1 BEFORE THE ILLINOIS POLLUTION CONTROL BOARD

IN THE MATTER OF: )

4 )

PETITION OF VONCO PRODUCTS, INC. )

5 FOR AN ADJUSTED STANDARD FROM 35 ) AS 00-012

ILL. ADM. CODE SECTIONS 218.401(a),)

6 (b), and (c) (the"FLEXOGRAPHIC )

PRINTING RULE"), )

7 )

9 The PROCEEDINGS held before JOHN

10 KNITTLE, Hearing Officer, taken stenographically

11 before GEANNA M. IAQUINTA, CSR, a notary public

12 within and for the County of Cook and State of

13 Illinois, at 118 West Cook Street, Libertyville,

14 Illinois, on the 15th day of November, A.D.,

15 2000, scheduled to commence at 10:30 a.m.

L.A. REPORTING (312) 419-9292

1 A P P E A R A N C E S:

ILLINOIS POLLUTION CONTROL BOARD,

3 100 West Randolph

Suite 11-500

4 Chicago, Illinois 60601

(312) 814-3629

5 BY: MR. JOHN KNITTLE, Hearing Officer, and

MR. BRAD HALLORAN

7 JOHNSON & BELL,

55 East Monroe Street

8 Suite 4100

Chicago, Illinois 60603

9 (312) 372-0770

BY: MS. SUSAN W. HORN

Appeared on behalf of Vonco Products,

11 Inc.,

ILLINOIS ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY,

13 1021 North Grand Avenue East

P.O. Box 19276

14 Springfield, Illinois 62794

BY: MS. BONNIE SAWYER and MR. DAVID

15 BLOOMBERG

L.A. REPORTING (312) 419-9292

1 I N D E X

3 PAGES

4 THE WITNESSES:

5 JOHN LaROI

Direct Examination

7 by Ms. Horn...................... 15-21

RICHARD TRZUPEK

Direct Examination

10 by Ms. Horn...................... 22-37

11 Cross-Examination

by Ms. Sawyer.................... 37-38

Redirect Examination

13 by Ms. Horn...................... 38-40

14 Recross-Examination

by Ms. Sawyer.................... 40-42

Re-Redirect Examination

16 by Ms. Horn...................... 43-43

L.A. REPORTING (312) 419-9292

1 HEARING OFFICER KNITTLE: My name is John

2 Knittle. I'm the hearing officer with the

3 Pollution Control Board. I'm also the assigned

4 hearing officer to this case, which is Adjusted

5 Standard 2000-12, In the Matter of Petition of:

6 Petition of Vonco Products, Incorporated, for an

7 Adjusted Standard from 35 Ill. Adm. Code

8 Sections 218.401(a), (b), and (c)(the "Flexographic

9 Printing Rule").

10 Today's date is November 15th. It

11 is approximately 10:40 a.m. I want to note for

12 the record that Pollution Control Board employee

13 Brad Halloran is with us here today. Brad is a

14 hearing officer as well. We're going to run

15 this hearing pursuant to Section 106.806, which

16 is the order of hearing for general adjusted

17 standards.

18 As noted the previous two days, we

19 are not running this hearing according to

20 Subpart E, which is the air adjusted standard

21 procedures. Section 106.501 designates the

22 scope and applicability of that section and is

23 only applied when an adjusted standard is

24 brought pursuant to 35 Ill. Adm. Code 212.126.

L.A. REPORTING (312) 419-9292

1 It's my understanding both Ms. Horn and Ms. Sawyer

2 have agreed in the past that this, too, is not

3 brought pursuant to that section.

4 Is that correct, Ms. Horn?

5 MS. HORN: That's correct.

6 HEARING OFFICER KNITTLE: Ms. Sawyer, do

7 you agree with that?

8 MS. SAWYER: Yes.

9 HEARING OFFICER KNITTLE: So we're going

10 to run it according to the section already

11 noted, 106.806.

12 At this point in time, I'd like to

13 have the parties identify themselves, starting

14 with the petitioner.

15 MS. HORN: My name is Susan Horn,

16 H-o-r-n. I'm the attorney with Johnson & Bell

17 in Chicago for the Petitioner, Vonco Products.

18 I have with me today Mr. John LaRoi. It's

19 L-a-R-o-i. He's president and general --

20 vice-president and general manager of Vonco

21 Products and Rich Trzupek, who is an

22 environmental consultant with Huff & Huff.

23 HEARING OFFICER KNITTLE: And for the

24 IEPA?

L.A. REPORTING (312) 419-9292

1 MS. SAWYER: Good morning. I'm Bonnie

2 Sawyer. I'm an assistant counsel with the

3 Illinois Environmental Protection Agency, and

4 with me today is David Bloomberg. He is an

5 environmental engineer with our agency.

6 HEARING OFFICER KNITTLE: Thank you, Ms. Sawyer.

7 I want to note again for the record, and I've

8 noted this a couple times now, but I do it for

9 every case, that I will not be making the

10 ultimate decision in this matter. That ruling

11 will come from the Illinois Pollution Control

12 Board, which is a board comprised of several

13 members located throughout the state of Illinois

14 chosen for their environmental expertise and

15 knowledge.

16 I'll be ruling on any evidentiary

17 matters and any other issues that arise during

18 the hearing, and I hope -- and my job is to

19 ensure an orderly hearing which will provide the

20 Board with a concise and clear record on which

21 to base its decision.

22 At this point in time, do we have

23 any preliminary matters before we get started

24 with opening statements?

L.A. REPORTING (312) 419-9292

1 MS. HORN: No.

2 MS. SAWYER: No.

3 HEARING OFFICER KNITTLE: Both parties

4 indicate no.

5 Ms. Horn, your opening statement,

6 please.

7 MS. HORN: Vonco Products, Inc. is

8 seeking an adjusted standard from 35 Ill. Adm.

9 Code Subpart H, Section 218.401(a), (b), and

10 (c), known as the Flexographic Printing Rule as

11 it applies to the emissions of volatile organic

12 material, or VOM, from its one central emission

13 flexographic printing press.

14 The evidence will show that Vonco

15 operates this flexographic printing press to

16 print images using inks onto high slip

17 polyethylene film, which is then converted into

18 a package for the medical, industrial, and

19 retail industries.

20 The evidence will show that Vonco

21 has been working with the Illinois Environmental

22 Protection Agency since 1994 to address

23 difficulties with the Flexographic Printing

24 Rule. On May 17th, 1999, Vonco filed a petition

L.A. REPORTING (312) 419-9292

1 seeking a variance from the rule.

2 Following subsequent negotiations

3 with the IEPA, Vonco realized that the proposed

4 relief that it was seeking was better applied as

5 an adjusted standard. Therefore, Vonco

6 dismissed its petition for a variance and filed

7 the present petition for an adjusted standard.

8 The specific regulation from which

9 Vonco seeks an adjusted standard requires the

10 flexographic printers to use inks that contain

11 either, one, no more than 40 percent VOM,

12 excluding water, by volume or, two, no more than

13 25 percent VOM by volume of the volatile content

14 of the ink. If a source cannot use water-based

15 inks, then the source must design and apply an

16 approved control device. If a source chooses to

17 comply with the Flexographic Printing Rule by

18 equipping the flexographic printing press with

19 an add-on control, then that control device must

20 reduce the captured VOM emissions by at least 90

21 percent by weight or achieve an overall

22 reduction of 60 percent in VOM emissions by

23 alternative control systems that have been

24 approved by the IEPA and the United States

L.A. REPORTING (312) 419-9292

1 Environmental Protection Agency or USEPA.

2 As the evidence will show, the

3 regulation from which Vonco requires an adjusted

4 standard applies to sources with a potential to

5 emit 25 tons per year or more of VOM. The

6 initial RACT regulations applied to major

7 sources with actual VOM emissions in excess of

8 100 tons per year.

9 In response to the adoption of the

10 federal implementation plan, the Board amended

11 the RACT rules to require that all Chicago area

12 sources with maximum theoretical emissions of at

13 least 100 tons per year to implement RACT.

14 Pursuant to Section 182(d) of the

15 Clean Air Act, individual states within severe

16 ozone nonattainment areas are required to

17 include all sources with the potential to emit

18 of at least 25 tons per year as major sources,

19 and those states must also adopt RACT

20 regulations applicable to those sources.

21 Therefore, the Illinois Pollution

22 Control Board established the requirements

23 described in the Flexographic Printing Rule.

24 The evidence will show that Vonco is located in

L.A. REPORTING (312) 419-9292

1 Lake Villa, Illinois, in Lake County, which is

2 part of the Chicago area designated as a severe

3 ozone nonattainment area. Therefore, it is

4 subject to the requirements in the Flexographic

5 Printing Rule.

6 The regulation of general applicability

7 from which Vonco seeks an adjusted standard does

8 not specify a level of justification for an

9 adjusted standard. Therefore, the requirements

10 in Section 28.1 of the Illinois Environmental

11 Protection Act found at 35 ILCS 5/28.1 apply.

12 Section 28.1 of the Act states that the Board

13 may grant individual adjusted standards upon

14 proof that, one, the factors relating to the

15 petitioner are substantially and significantly

16 different; two, the existence of those factors

17 justifies an adjusted standard; three, the

18 requested standard will not result in adverse

19 environmental or health effects; and, four, the

20 proposed adjusted standard is consistent with

21 federal law.

22 As the evidence will show, these

23 four factors have been met because Vonco cannot

24 use water-based inks for its product and because

L.A. REPORTING (312) 419-9292

1 the approved control technologies will work only

2 at unreasonable costs. Therefore, an adjusted

3 standard is necessary for Vonco.

4 HEARING OFFICER KNITTLE: Thank you, Ms. Horn.

5 Ms. Sawyer, do you have an opening

6 statement?

7 MS. SAWYER: Yes, I do.

8 Good morning. My name is Bonnie

9 Sawyer. I'm representing the Illinois

10 Environmental Protection Agency in this matter.

11 Our agency has had the opportunity to review

12 Vonco's petition for an adjusted standard, and

13 we have filed a response with the Pollution

14 Control Board.

15 In this response, we have

16 recommended that the Board grant Vonco an

17 adjusted standard subject to certain

18 conditions. I just wanted to emphasize one

19 condition that we are requesting the Board

20 impose on any adjusted standard granted to this

21 facility.

22 The petition requested that

23 recordkeeping be maintained as a monthly

24 average. We are recommending to the Board that

L.A. REPORTING (312) 419-9292

1 any adjusted standard granted impose daily

2 recordkeeping upon the facility similar to the

3 recordkeeping required under the general rule of

4 applicability, the Flexographic Printing Rule.

5 In another matter in the original

6 petition, Vonco suggested that an annual

7 limitation on emissions of 100 tons per year be

8 imposed on the adjusted standard. We are

9 recommending that the adjusted standard should

10 not include an annual limitation on emissions.

11 Vonco's permit currently limits them in their

12 annual emissions of volatile organic material,

13 and we are recommending that the permit

14 limitation be maintained as the appropriate

15 method to address annual emissions.

16 We have requested that 12 conditions

17 be imposed on an adjusted standard. I wanted to

18 clarify two of them, and these 12 conditions are

19 found in our response. In condition four, it

20 reads, Vonco must perform alone, or in

21 conjunction with others, three experiments each

22 year, including any experiments requested by the

23 Illinois EPA of alternative inks to determine if

24 these inks are compliant with the Flexographic

L.A. REPORTING (312) 419-9292

1 Printing Rule and technically feasible for

2 Vonco's printing operations.

3 We wanted to clarify that any

4 experiments requested by the Illinois EPA would

5 be included within the three that the facility

6 would be required to perform alone or in

7 conjunction with other facilities and would not

8 be an additional requirement to perform

9 experiments.

10 Another condition that I wanted to

11 clarify is condition seven. It reads, Vonco

12 shall not operate any other printing press at

13 its Elm Hurst, Illinois -- pardon me, at its

14 Lake Villa, Illinois, source without full

15 compliance with the requirements of the

16 Flexographic Printing Rule.

17 We want to clarify that this should

18 read, Vonco shall not operate any other

19 flexographic printing press at its Lake Villa,

20 Illinois, source without full compliance with

21 the requirements of the Flexographic Printing

22 Rule. We didn't intend for this condition to

23 essentially require a printing press that would

24 otherwise not be subject to the flexographic

L.A. REPORTING (312) 419-9292

1 rule to comply with that rule.

2 It is our understanding that the

3 petitioner has agreed to the 12 conditions that

4 we have requested that the Board impose on an

5 adjusted standard, and based on previous

6 discussions, it's my understanding that the

7 petitioner will make a statement to that effect

8 on the record in today's proceeding.

9 HEARING OFFICER KNITTLE: Is that your --

10 are you finished, aside from her responsive

11 statement --

12 MS. SAWYER: Yes, I am.

13 HEARING OFFICER KNITTLE: -- with your

14 opening statement?

15 Ms. Horn, do you concur with that

16 assessment?

17 MS. HORN: I do. We have -- Vonco

18 Products has agreed to all 12 conditions.

19 HEARING OFFICER KNITTLE: Okay.

20 MS. HORN: Could we go off the record

21 just a minute?

22 HEARING OFFICER KNITTLE: Yes, we can.

23 (Discussion had

24 off the record.)

L.A. REPORTING (312) 419-9292

1 HEARING OFFICER KNITTLE: We're back on

2 the record.

3 Ms. Horn, do you want to start with

4 your case in chief and call your first witness,

5 please?

6 MS. HORN: Sure. I'd like to call John

7 LaRoi.

8 HEARING OFFICER KNITTLE: Mr. LaRoi, have

9 a seat. The court reporter will swear you in.

10 (Witness sworn.)

11 WHEREUPON:

12 J O H N L a R O I,

13 called as a witness herein, having been first

14 duly sworn, deposeth and saith as follows:

15 D I R E C T E X A M I N A T I O N

16 by Ms. Horn

17 Q. Please state your name for the record.

18 A. It's John LaRoi. That's L-a-R-o-i.

19 Q. Where do you live?

20 A. 1716 Eric Lane in Libertyville, Illinois.

21 Q. Where are you employed?

22 A. At Vonco Products, which is in Lake

23 Villa, Illinois.

24 Q. What is your position with Vonco

L.A. REPORTING (312) 419-9292

1 Products?

2 A. I am the vice-president and general

3 manager.

4 Q. What are your duties as vice-president

5 and general manager?

6 A. I oversee all the manufacturing and

7 printing operations at the company.

8 Q. How many employees does Vonco have?

9 A. Between 75 and 85.

10 Q. Does Vonco use any type of a printing

11 press in its operations?

12 A. Yes, we do. We have one flexographic

13 central impression printing press.

14 Q. For what is it used?

15 A. It's to surface print to polyethylene for

16 the custom packaging that we manufacture.

17 Q. Is Vonco -- compared to other printers in

18 this industry, is Vonco large or small?

19 A. We are considered probably a job shop

20 based on the small runs that we do. It would be

21 a job shop.

22 Q. How does that relate to running your

23 presses?

24 A. It means we have several changeovers. We

L.A. REPORTING (312) 419-9292

1 run a lot of short runs. So there will be

2 several jobs we would run during the day.

3 Q. Approximately, how many jobs would you

4 complete in a typical day?

5 A. Anywhere between five and ten.

6 Q. What would be the shortest job you've run

7 and the longest job?

8 A. The shortest is just about an hour, and

9 the longest run that we've done is about three

10 days, and that's on a rare occasion.

11 Q. What brand is Vonco's press?

12 A. We have a Uteco.

13 Q. And how old is it?

14 A. It's nine years old.

15 Q. Could you explain very briefly how it

16 works?

17 A. It's a central impression press. What

18 you do is you draw a film through and you apply

19 ink. It's a six-color press. So at six

20 different stations, ink gets applied, it's

21 dried, and then the film advances to the next

22 station, and the ink gets reapplied, and it

23 continues through the six stations, gets dried,

24 and rewound.

L.A. REPORTING (312) 419-9292

1 Q. How do the drying stations work?

2 A. At each drying station, there's heated

3 forced air that blows across the web, and then

4 there's a section that evacuates and pulls the

5 heated air away that drys the ink.

6 Q. What type of products does Vonco produce?

7 A. We make medical products, products for

8 industrial. We do promotional and retail

9 packaging, and I can be more specific.

10 Q. I think that's sufficient.

11 A. Okay.

12 Q. What type of ink does Vonco use?

13 A. We use solvent-based ink.

14 Q. Do you know if the solvents in the ink

15 contain VOM?

16 A. Yes, they do.

17 Q. Do you add any additional solvent during

18 the printing operations?

19 A. Yes, we do.

20 Q. Why do you do that?

21 A. You have to cut the inks to allow the

22 viscosity to be at a point that you can apply it

23 and it will dry.

24 Q. Did you do -- did you experiment with any

L.A. REPORTING (312) 419-9292

1 water-based inks?

2 A. Yes, I have. I've run at least six

3 water-based ink trials.

4 Q. What's the difference, besides from the

5 actual water versus solvent?

6 Is that the only difference with a

7 water-based ink?

8 A. The difference between the solvent and

9 the water-based ink? Is that what you're

10 asking?

11 Q. Right.

12 A. The water-based ink, it uses water to

13 carry the pigments and the solids to apply, and

14 it dries differently. It runs differently.

15 Solvent is different. I guess I don't know how

16 specific you want me to get.

17 Q. How about what did Vonco do with

18 water-based ink trials?

19 A. What we did in our water-based trials is

20 we tested to make sure that the color was

21 acceptable. We made sure that we could run our

22 press at an acceptable speed. We made sure

23 there was adhesion. An adhesion is where the

24 ink must adhere to the substrate without coming

L.A. REPORTING (312) 419-9292

1 off, and the way you test that is with a piece

2 of tape, pull it off.

3 We make sure it cures okay, and we

4 monitor the cleanup. We had to make sure that

5 we could run the press and then tear it down,

6 clean it up, and not damage the press, the

7 printing plates, or the Anilox printing rolls or

8 Anilox rolls.

9 Q. What were the results of your trials?

10 A. We found out that, number one, we could

11 not get an acceptable adhesion. Number two, we

12 couldn't run the press fast enough to really

13 justify using the ink.

14 The cleanup was excessive. We had

15 ink dry on our printing plates. We had ink dry

16 in our ceramic laser engraved Anilox rolls that

17 we had to send out and clean. It had to be

18 ultrasonically cleaned. In one case, we had one

19 roller I had to send out and get reconditioned

20 because we couldn't get the water-based pigments

21 out of the pores.

22 We had a customer also state that

23 they would not accept the color -- the depth of

24 color, the sheen on the water-based product and

L.A. REPORTING (312) 419-9292

1 wanted the solvent-based ink.

2 Q. Do you happen to know what the cost of

3 these trials to Vonco was?

4 A. It cost me around $18,000; press time,

5 operators, cleanup, and ink.

6 Q. Have you participated in these adjusted

7 standard proceedings leading up to the hearing?

8 A. Yes. Yes, I have.

9 Q. Could you explain your involvement?

10 A. I got involved basically in the beginning

11 with BEMA films. We first started talking about

12 Title 5, and it's been trips to Springfield and

13 working with the Illinois EPA and working with

14 other converters to kind of understand the rule

15 and see how it applied. So it's been since we

16 all started.

17 MS. HORN: Thank you. I have no further

18 questions.

19 HEARING OFFICER KNITTLE: Ms. Sawyer, any

20 cross-examination?

21 MS. SAWYER: No questions.

22 HEARING OFFICER KNITTLE: Thank you.

23 Sir, you can step down.

24 Ms. Horn, your next witness, please.

L.A. REPORTING (312) 419-9292

1 MS. HORN: Our next and hopefully last

2 witness will be Rich Trzupek.

3 HEARING OFFICER KNITTLE: Mr. Trzupek,

4 we're going to have Ms. Iaquinta swear you in,

5 please.

6 (Witness sworn.)

7 HEARING OFFICER KNITTLE: Ms. Horn, your

8 witness.

9 WHEREUPON:

10 R I C H A R D T R U P E K,

11 called as a witness herein, having been first

12 duly sworn, deposeth and saith as follows:

13 D I R E C T E X A M I N A T I O N

14 by Ms. Horn

15 Q. Please state your name for the record.

16 A. It's Richard Trzupek.

17 Q. Could you spell your last name for the

18 court reporter?

19 A. It's spelled T, as in Tom, r-z-u, P, as

20 in Peter, e-k.

21 Q. Where do you live?

22 A. In Streamwood, Illinois.

23 Q. Where are you currently employed?

24 A. At Huff & Huff, Incorporated of LaGrange,

L.A. REPORTING (312) 419-9292

1 Illinois.

2 Q. What do you do for Huff & Huff?

3 A. I am the manager of air quality. We are

4 a firm that does environmental consulting for

5 industry.

6 Q. What is your educational background?

7 A. I have a bachelor's degree in chemistry

8 from Loyola University of Chicago.

9 Q. Do you have any training or experience in

10 air regulations, specifically with regard to the

11 printing industry?

12 A. I do.

13 Q. Could you tell us what it is?

14 A. I have been involved with the printing

15 industry in regard to compliance with air

16 quality regulations and control issues for

17 approximately 18 years.

18 Q. Are you familiar with Vonco Products'

19 printing operations?

20 A. I am.

21 Q. And how are you familiar with them?

22 A. I've been working with Vonco for the past

23 three years in regards to coming into compliance

24 with the Flexographic Printing Rule.

L.A. REPORTING (312) 419-9292

1 Q. Were you involved in the negotiations and

2 the analysis and calculations that formed the

3 basis for Vonco's petition for an adjusted

4 standard?

5 A. I was.

6 Q. Could you briefly describe the

7 Flexographic Printing Rule?

8 A. The Flexographic Printing Rule, in

9 essence, presents three options for control.

10 One is the use of an add-on control device,

11 meaning certain control requirements specified

12 in the rule.

13 The second is the use of compliant

14 inks that meet certain VOM percentages that are

15 specified in the rule, and the third is a use of

16 a mixture of compliant and noncompliant inks

17 that on a daily weighted average basis, using

18 calculations specified in the rule, meet the VOM

19 percentages specified in the rule.

20 Q. Could you explain the technical

21 difference between using solvent-based inks and

22 water-based inks?

23 A. Solvent-based inks and water-based inks

24 use different mechanisms to set the image and

L.A. REPORTING (312) 419-9292

1 the protective film that forms on the image that

2 helps with adhesion in protecting it. In a

3 solvent-based ink, the solvent evaporates and

4 leaves the pigment and film formers on the

5 image.

6 The solvent evaporates relatively

7 quickly, which it needs to do because there's

8 very little time between print stations and the

9 plastic film does not absorb any of the

10 pigments. So it has to be left on the surface

11 very quickly in between the drying stations.

12 A water-based ink uses a chemical

13 action to set the image and form the film. It's

14 actually a catalytic action cross-linking

15 between the components of the film, and it does

16 not happen as quickly. The water does not flash

17 off as quickly as the solvents do, and you also

18 need additional time for the cross-linking

19 components to cure and set the image.

20 Q. Okay. Did you hear Mr. LaRoi's testimony

21 about Vonco's experiments with water-based inks?

22 A. I did.

23 Q. Do you agree -- based on your experience,

24 do you agree with his conclusions?

L.A. REPORTING (312) 419-9292

1 A. I do.

2 Q. Mr. LaRoi also testified that Vonco adds

3 additional solvents to the inks.

4 How much do the inks contain when

5 they come from the manufacturer and how much

6 solvent do printers in general have to add?

7 A. As supplied by the manufacturer, inks may

8 contain anywhere from typically 50 to 70

9 percent, and I'd say 60 percent would be a good

10 average of solvent. As applied at the stations,

11 they may contain anywhere from 60 to 80 percent

12 and probably the upper 70s would be a good,

13 typical average.

14 Q. Okay. Could you explain briefly what a

15 nonattainment area is?

16 A. Nonattainment area is an area which has

17 not achieved compliance with national ambient

18 air quality standards for a criteria pollutant.

19 Q. Is Vonco located in a nonattainment area?

20 A. They are located in a nonattainment --

21 the Chicago metropolitan nonattainment area for

22 ozone, a six-county area, and it includes Lake

23 County in which Vonco is located.

24 Q. Could you briefly describe the three

L.A. REPORTING (312) 419-9292

1 add-on control options available to Vonco?

2 A. Vonco can use some form of oxidation,

3 either catalytic or thermal. They can use

4 carbon absorption, or they could use gas

5 absorption, which is some form of a scrubber.

6 Q. In your opinion, are any of these three

7 appropriate for Vonco?

8 A. Yes. The oxidation methods are

9 technically viable for Vonco. Carbon absorption

10 is technically not viable for Vonco. Some of

11 the alcohols don't absorb well and, further,

12 when the alcohols are desorbed through passage

13 of steam through the carbon bed and then

14 recondenses to water, some of the alcohols are

15 very volatile and would not stay in the water

16 and allow them to easily achieve their control

17 requirements.

18 Gas absorption or a scrubber also

19 similarly absorbs the alcohols and other VOCs in

20 the water, but, again, because of volatility of

21 these VOCs or VOMs, they tend not to stay in the

22 water rendering that one difficult to achieve

23 control requirements as well.

24 Of the basic oxidation options,

L.A. REPORTING (312) 419-9292

1 catalytic oxidation is possible for some

2 printers. Other printers have difficulty with

3 it because of contamination to the catalyst.

4 The choice that we made in the case of Vonco was

5 that they would rather not take the chance on

6 catalytic and look primarily at thermal

7 oxidation.

8 Q. Did you do any analysis of the cost of

9 different options for control?

10 A. Yes, I did.

11 Q. Could you explain briefly?

12 A. We examined the cost control using USEPA

13 standard control cost methodology. That was a

14 cooperative effort between ourselves and IEPA

15 until we got to a point where we agreed on the

16 control cost numbers.

17 Q. Okay. What are the basic terms of the

18 adjusted standard that IEPA has proposed and

19 Vonco has agreed to?

20 A. The adjusted standard sets a VOM limit

21 for the as-applied inks that Vonco uses of 82

22 percent on a daily weighted average basis.

23 Q. Is there a change to that 82 percent

24 anywhere else in the conditions?

L.A. REPORTING (312) 419-9292

1 A. There's a provision for the ozone season

2 that the -- the basis for ERMs purposes will be

3 a 72 percent basis for calculating baseline for

4 the ERM season.

5 Q. Does the proposed adjusted standard

6 contain an annual emissions limit?

7 A. It does not.

8 Q. Why not?

9 A. Because the annual emissions limit is

10 provided for in their current operating permit.

11 Q. Does the proposed adjusted standard

12 require daily recordkeeping or monthly

13 recordkeeping?

14 A. Daily recordkeeping.

15 Q. And why is that?

16 A. Because the standard -- national ambient

17 air quality standard to which the rule -- which

18 provides the reason for the rule being imposed

19 provides for a daily limit on ozone

20 concentration in ambient air.

21 Q. Is it your understanding that Vonco has

22 agreed to do daily recordkeeping?

23 A. It is.

24 Q. In your opinion, will daily recordkeeping

L.A. REPORTING (312) 419-9292

1 be difficult for Vonco?

2 A. I believe daily recordkeeping will be

3 difficult for Vonco.

4 MS. HORN: At this time, I would like to

5 show Mr. Trzupek what is marked as Petitioner's

6 Exhibit 1, which is the videotape, which I don't

7 have in front of me.

8 Please let the record reflect that

9 I've previously provided Ms. Sawyer and

10 Mr. Bloomberg with a copy of Exhibit 1.

11 BY MS. HORN:

12 Q. Mr. Trzupek, what is Exhibit 1?

13 A. It's a videotape of a job that was

14 performed at Vonco Products that I observed in

15 order to document the typical procedures for

16 printing at Vonco and ink mixing procedures that

17 go along with that.

18 Q. Did you act as the narrator on the video?

19 A. I did.

20 Q. Why did Vonco make the video?

21 A. In order to document what is done to mix

22 inks and to maintain ink quality during their

23 printing jobs.

24 MS. HORN: At this time, I would like to

L.A. REPORTING (312) 419-9292

1 show Mr. Trzupek what's marked as Petitioner's

2 Exhibit 2. Please also let the record reflect

3 that I have previously provided Ms. Sawyer and

4 Mr. Bloomberg with a copy of Exhibit 2.

5 BY MS. HORN:

6 Q. Mr. Trzupek, can you identify this

7 exhibit?

8 A. Yes, I can.

9 Q. What is it?

10 A. It is the job that was printed when the

11 videotape was filmed. It's a small trash bag on

12 a polyethylene film.

13 MS. HORN: At this time, I'd like to

14 request that Petitioner's Exhibits 1 and 2 be

15 entered into evidence.

16 HEARING OFFICER KNITTLE: Any objection

17 to Petitioner's No. 1, Ms. Sawyer?

18 MS. SAWYER: No objection.

19 HEARING OFFICER KNITTLE: That will be

20 admitted.

21 Petitioner's No. 2, the small trash

22 bag, any objection to that?

23 MS. SAWYER: No objection.

24 HEARING OFFICER KNITTLE: That, too, will

L.A. REPORTING (312) 419-9292

1 be admitted.

2 MS. HORN: At this time, I request the

3 hearing officer's permission to have Mr. Trzupek

4 explain the printing operation shown on the

5 videotape.

6 HEARING OFFICER KNITTLE: Any objection,

7 Ms. Sawyer?

8 MS. SAWYER: No objection.

9 HEARING OFFICER KNITTLE: Please proceed,

10 sir.

11 BY THE WITNESS:

12 A. We are at 9:40:31 in the videotape. I

13 have muted the tape for purposes of the hearing,

14 but there is a narrative provided with the tape

15 as well.

16 We're looking at Vonco's printing

17 press at 9:40:50 at this point before the job

18 has started. We'll fast forward to something

19 more interesting. The time of the tape is

20 9:45:23, and we're looking at Vonco's ink room.

21 This view gives us a partial view of the

22 different inks that Vonco stores in five-gallon

23 pails.

24 They're primarily reworked inks.

L.A. REPORTING (312) 419-9292

1 Those are inks that are custom blended to a

2 particular color and then stored for later

3 reuse, recycling rather than being disposed of.

4 These inks are distinguished from virgin inks,

5 which at 9:45:54 we see a couple of virgin inks

6 from which the blended colors are made, reflex

7 blue and cyan green are the two that are

8 identified on the sign. They're stored in

9 55-gallon drums.

10 We're at 9:50:07 and we're looking

11 at the plate-making operation. At this point,

12 the technician is wiping down the printing

13 plate. It's one use of solvent basically

14 showing the various ways solvents are used in

15 the printing operation. In this case, he's

16 simply cleaning up the roller preparatory to

17 putting the printing plate on it.

18 The time is 9:52. We're looking at

19 a solvent being dispensed for cleanup purposes

20 and a container and dispenser for cleanup

21 solvent. The time is 10:05:10 and we're looking

22 at the final printed product as it's supposed to

23 look and they're flipping through the various

24 colors, color separation that is involved in the

L.A. REPORTING (312) 419-9292

1 printing process so you can see how the

2 different colors are laid on in stages.

3 The time is 10:06:24 and we're

4 looking at a panetone color key and basically

5 examples of the different colors that are

6 possibly mixed from the base colors and the wide

7 variety of colors that can be used by Vonco's

8 customers.

9 The time is 10:16:52 and we're

10 looking at custom blending of one of the colors,

11 and this being done by mixing a couple of base

12 blues in proportion from the panetone chart.

13 The time is 10:18:24. We're looking at

14 viscosity checking of the color. This is done

15 using a number two zone cup. It dispenses a

16 predetermined amount of ink. The operator

17 drains the ink through a hole in the bottom of

18 the cup and times it.

19 Viscosity is expressed in terms of

20 seconds it takes for the ink to completely run

21 out, and the specs for the particular job will

22 be in so many seconds viscosity. In order to

23 adjust the viscosity, the operator will most

24 often add solvent to bring the time down. If he

L.A. REPORTING (312) 419-9292

1 should overshoot the margin, he might add a

2 little bit of ink as well.

3 The amount of solvent that's

4 contained in the ink is roughly proportional to

5 the viscosity and serves as a good surrogate

6 measurement and not a solvent. That's there.

7 We see the operator adding solvent in the

8 typical fashion at 10:19:22.

9 We're at 10:45:13 and we're looking

10 at the actual ink pails on the press. The pail

11 is used to dispense the ink. There's pumps

12 attached to the pail with covers that pump the

13 ink to the ink station and then recirculate it

14 back down. It keeps the viscosity constant and

15 the ink quality constant.

16 We're looking at a printing unit at

17 10:45:44 showing yellow ink flowing. The

18 balance of the tape goes through the job. It

19 shows the print stations, the drying stations,

20 and viscosity adjustments.

21 What is emphasized here is the

22 number of viscosity adjustments that are made,

23 the number of solvent additions that are made

24 and that they are made for each color in the job

L.A. REPORTING (312) 419-9292

1 so that we find that typical number of absolute

2 measurements one would make if one tried to

3 account for every drop of solvent at every point

4 would be typically in, you know, more than 100

5 measurements very easily.

6 However, the target viscosities they

7 shoot for we see is a constant number and

8 provides a good means of knowing what the

9 as-applied content should be. We also

10 emphasize, as we go through the tape, that the

11 solvent is constantly evaporating and so that's

12 why they're constantly adding solvent in order

13 to make up -- to try to keep a given amount of

14 solvent in the ink as the job goes on. We'll

15 stop it there.

16 BY MS. HORN:

17 Q. Thank you, Mr. Trzupek. I have just one

18 final question that I didn't ask you, but I

19 will.

20 Could you tell me when we were

21 discussing the costs of the add-on control

22 options, could you tell me the cost of

23 oxidation, cost in cost per ton number?

24 A. The number we submitted to the state?

L.A. REPORTING (312) 419-9292

1 Q. I think that's only -- there's only one.

2 A. For the two oxidation options that we

3 found viable, recuperative and regenerative, we

4 came up with a recuperative number of $39,858

5 per ton and a regenerative number of $34,156 per

6 ton.

7 MS. HORN: I have nothing further.

8 HEARING OFFICER KNITTLE: Ms. Sawyer, do

9 you have a cross-exam for this witness?

10 MS. SAWYER: I think so, but just one

11 minute.

12 HEARING OFFICER KNITTLE: Sure. Let's go

13 off.

14 (Discussion had

15 off the record.)

16 HEARING OFFICER KNITTLE: Ms. Sawyer,

17 your cross-examination.

18 C R O S S - E X A M I N A T I O N

19 by Ms. Sawyer

20 Q. Good morning, Mr. Trzupek.

21 You were -- in the video, you were

22 showing solvent that's added to inks for a given

23 print job.

24 Would it be feasible to measure the

L.A. REPORTING (312) 419-9292

1 amount of solvent added on a given print job

2 based on the volume used from the containers or

3 the weight of the container before the job and

4 after the job?

5 A. Yeah. I mean, that -- you would use more

6 than one container in a given job, but I think

7 it may be viable to count the number of

8 containers used at a constant basis or to, you

9 know, weigh on a daily basis the solvent drum

10 from which the solvent originated, something to

11 that sort, yes.

12 MS. SAWYER: Okay. I have nothing

13 further.

14 MS. HORN: I just have --

15 HEARING OFFICER KNITTLE: Any redirect?

16 MS. HORN: Just one. Now I forgot it.

17 R E D I R E C T E X A M I N A T I O N

18 by Ms. Horn

19 Q. If you were weighing the solvent, the

20 total amount of solvent added, would that give

21 you an accurate reading as to the VOM content of

22 the ink at any given time?

23 A. The amount of solvent added would not

24 correspond directly to the VOM content of the

L.A. REPORTING (312) 419-9292

1 ink as applied because you also have evaporative

2 losses in the ink to account for as well.

3 Q. And would you have to do that same

4 accounting for each of the number of inks that

5 were used on the job?

6 A. I'm sorry. I didn't understand your

7 question.

8 Q. Would you count the solvent for each ink

9 as applied or would you count the total solvent

10 used in your example?

11 A. I think that is open to interpretation

12 and would depend on whatever is finally agreed

13 to between the Agency and Vonco as to what's the

14 most accurate and feasible plan for keeping

15 daily records.

16 MS. HORN: Okay. I have nothing

17 further.

18 HEARING OFFICER KNITTLE: Recross, Ms.

19 Sawyer?

20 MS. SAWYER: Possibly.

21 HEARING OFFICER KNITTLE: Let's go off

22 the record again.

23 (Discussion had

24 off the record.)

L.A. REPORTING (312) 419-9292

1 R E C R O S S - E X A M I N A T I O N

2 by Ms. Sawyer

3 Q. Mr. Trzupek, in the adjusted standard

4 petition, you developed a percentage of VOM for

5 inks applied that would be used at the facility

6 as the adjusted standard and that number was 82

7 percent VOM weight -- I don't know, 82 percent.

8 Could you explain how you calculated

9 that 82 percent?

10 A. Yes. We looked at the mass of solvent

11 used on an annual basis, the VOM content of the

12 inks as supplied on an annual basis, and that,

13 of course, comes with a number higher than what

14 would be the actual as-applied VOM content.

15 So we backed off to what we thought

16 would be a reasonable percentage that would

17 represent the highest as-applied number.

18 Q. When you refer to as applied, you are

19 referring to the ink supplied from the pails to

20 the pan or the ink from the pan to the

21 printing -- printed substrate or is it the same

22 thing?

23 A. I would say it's the same thing.

24 Q. So it is one of those two areas that

L.A. REPORTING (312) 419-9292

1 you're referring to as the as-applied content of

2 the inks?

3 A. Yes. It's recirculated.

4 Q. And in that respect, if there are

5 additions made that evaporate, they may not be

6 included in that?

7 A. I would say it depends -- it depends on

8 how you account for them, and if, for example, I

9 guess to clarify, if you counted every solvent

10 addition against an ink and said every time that

11 you added solvent you said it was increasing the

12 VOC content of the ink, by the end of a job, you

13 may show a particular ink to be out of

14 compliance with any standard, and if you took

15 that ink and put it back in and reworked it and

16 you counted the additional solvent additions

17 against it, you would show an ever-growing VOM

18 content.

19 That's not what actually happens.

20 They attempt to maintain a constant VOM

21 content. So it's not accurate to count every

22 solvent addition and say the VOM content is

23 increasing, and that's what I'm really trying to

24 get to. The VOM content doesn't increase; it's

L.A. REPORTING (312) 419-9292

1 maintained.

2 Q. So when you add solvent to ink, though,

3 you're adding it because there was some

4 evaporation that occurred?

5 A. Absolutely.

6 Q. Okay.

7 A. And in accounting for the mass loss, I

8 mean, you have to account for all the solvent

9 additions, understood, but what the content is

10 you try to maintain as a flat line.

11 MS. SAWYER: Okay. Thank you. No

12 further questions.

13 HEARING OFFICER KNITTLE: Ms. Horn, a

14 re-redirect?

15 MS. HORN: I just need a minute.

16 HEARING OFFICER KNITTLE: Off.

17 (Discussion had

18 off the record.)

19 HEARING OFFICER KNITTLE: Let's go back

20 on the record. Do we have a re-redirect, Ms.

21 Horn?

22 MS. HORN: I just have one question, and

23 it's mainly to clarify Mr. Trzupek's testimony.

L.A. REPORTING (312) 419-9292

1 R E - R E D I R E C T E X A M I N A T I O N

2 by Ms. Horn

3 Q. Mr. Trzupek, do you add solvent or does

4 Vonco add solvent to get the ink up to the

5 target viscosity?

6 A. Yes, they do. Initially, Vonco will add

7 solvent to the as-applied ink to reach what we

8 can call a target viscosity or running

9 viscosity, and then once they hit that running

10 viscosity, they will, as the job goes through,

11 add solvent to maintain that target.

12 So, for example, an ink may come in

13 at 60 percent VOC. They may bring it up to 75

14 percent VOC. Once they hit that target, which

15 corresponds to so many seconds of viscosity,

16 they will periodically add solvent to maintain

17 that higher VOC level.

18 MS. HORN: I have no further questions.

19 HEARING OFFICER KNITTLE: Ms. Sawyer, are

20 you going to have a three-time recross.

21 MS. SAWYER: No more questions.

22 HEARING OFFICER KNITTLE: Okay. Thank

23 you, sir. You can step down.

24 At this point in time, if there were

L.A. REPORTING (312) 419-9292

1 members of the public present, they'd be able to

2 offer public comment. However, I want to note

3 for the record that there are no members of the

4 public comment -- public here to comment.

5 Excuse me.

6 I realize now I've been a bit

7 premature. Ms. Horn, do you have any other

8 witnesses?

9 MS. HORN: I do not.

10 HEARING OFFICER KNITTLE: Well, then what

11 I previously said still applies and members of

12 the public, were they here, would be able to

13 offer public comment.

14 For the record, there are no such

15 members of the public here. We are now going to

16 proceed with closing statements starting with

17 Ms. Horn.

18 MS. HORN: I have a very brief one.

19 Vonco requests that the Board grant

20 the proposed adjusted standard as an alternative

21 to the RACT regulations adopted by the Board in

22 the Flexographic Printing Rule. To require

23 Vonco to comply with the requirements of 35 Ill.

24 Adm. Code Subpart H, Section 218.401 would

L.A. REPORTING (312) 419-9292

1 result in substantial economic hardship to Vonco

2 with no corresponding or proportional

3 environmental benefit.

4 Moreover, it is not technically

5 feasible for Vonco to comply with the

6 Flexographic Printing Rule because, one,

7 water-based inks do not work for its products

8 and, two, an oxidizer, as the only control

9 device that works, presents unreasonable

10 expenses for design and installation.

11 Vonco has met the four factors in

12 Section 28.1 of the Act and, therefore, Vonco

13 Products respectfully requests that the Board

14 grant Vonco the proposed adjusted standard from

15 35 Ill. Adm. Code Subpart H, Section 218.401 as

16 that rule applies to the emissions of VOM from

17 the flexographic printing operations at Vonco

18 Products in Lake Villa, Illinois.

19 HEARING OFFICER KNITTLE: Thank you,

20 Ms. Horn.

21 Ms. Sawyer, do you have a closing

22 statement?

23 MS. SAWYER: Yes, I do.

24 Representatives of the Illinois EPA

L.A. REPORTING (312) 419-9292

1 have reviewed the video that Vonco presented as

2 an exhibit today, and we believe that daily

3 recordkeeping is feasible for the facility. We

4 intend to work with the facility to come up with

5 the appropriate method to maintain daily

6 records.

7 To the extent that the method used

8 to demonstrate compliance with daily records

9 differs from the method used to determine the 82

10 percent standard requested in this proceeding

11 and to the extent that the daily recordkeeping

12 that will be maintained in the future indicates

13 that Vonco is able to meet a lower standard, we

14 would recommend that the adjusted standard be

15 adjusted to reflect that average, and that's all

16 that I had.

17 HEARING OFFICER KNITTLE: Thank you,

18 ma'am.

19 Any rebuttal closing argument,

20 Ms. Horn?

21 MS. HORN: I have none.

22 HEARING OFFICER KNITTLE: Thank you.

23 Let's go off the record.

L.A. REPORTING (312) 419-9292

1 (Discussion had

2 off the record.)

3 HEARING OFFICER KNITTLE: We're back on

4 the record after a brief off-the-record

5 discussion pertaining to posthearing briefs.

6 Both parties indicate that at this time they do

7 not want to file posthearing briefs.

8 Is that correct, Ms. Horn?

9 MS. HORN: That is correct.

10 HEARING OFFICER KNITTLE: Ms. Sawyer?

11 MS. SAWYER: Yes.

12 HEARING OFFICER KNITTLE: However, if, in

13 fact, any public comment is received in this

14 matter, the parties will have leave to come back

15 and ask me whether or not -- me for leave to

16 file posthearing briefs and we'll set up a

17 posthearing briefing schedule, and I would allow

18 that should any public comment be received in

19 this matter and that's any oral or written

20 public comment.

21 Speaking of public comments, we're

22 going to allow written public comments in this

23 matter to be filed 14 days from today, which

24 take us to November 29th. All public comments

L.A. REPORTING (312) 419-9292

1 must be received by November 29th, 2000. If

2 anything is received, once again, we'll redress

3 the briefing schedule situation. If, in fact,

4 no posthearing comments are received by that

5 date, however, the record will close and this

6 matter will be ready to be decided by the

7 Board.

8 It's about 11:35 a.m. We're going

9 to hold this open until 1:00 o'clock. We'll

10 take a recess and come back at 1:00 and make

11 sure that no members of the public wish to

12 comment on this matter.

13 Other than that, that is all I

14 have. I should note it now, though, that I am

15 required to make a credibility determination,

16 and based upon my legal judgment and experience,

17 I found no credibility issues with either of the

18 two witnesses giving testimony today. Okay.

19 Let's go off the record.

20 (Discussion had

21 off the record.)

22 (Break taken.)

23 HEARING OFFICER KNITTLE: We're back on

24 the record after a lunch recess. It's

L.A. REPORTING (312) 419-9292

1 approximately 1:00 p.m. I want to note for the

2 record that there are no members of the public

3 present. If there were, they would be allowed

4 to give public comment. However, that is not

5 the case.

6 We've already closed up the hearing

7 and set the posthearing briefing schedule and

8 talked about the credibility determination. So

9 I just want to thank you all for coming.

L.A. REPORTING (312) 419-9292

1 STATE OF ILLINOIS )

) SS.

2 COUNTY OF C O O K )

4 I, GEANNA M. IAQUINTA, CSR, do

5 hereby state that I am a court reporter doing

6 business in the City of Chicago, County of Cook,

7 and State of Illinois; that I reported by means

8 of machine shorthand the proceedings held in the

9 foregoing cause, and that the foregoing is a

10 true and correct transcript of my shorthand

11 notes so taken as aforesaid.

______________________________

14 Geanna M. Iaquinta, CSR

Notary Public, Cook County, IL

15 Illinois License No. 084-004096

17 SUBSCRIBED AND SWORN TO

before me this_____day

18 of_______, A.D., 2000.

19 _______________________

Notary Public

L.A. REPORTING (312) 419-9292