P97031.PDF

1 BEFORE THE ILLINOIS POLLUTION CONTROL BOARD

4 PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS,

5 Petitioner,

6 vs. No. PCB 97-031

7 JOHNNIE MAE HENDRICKS,

8 Respondent.

13 Proceedings held on September 9, 1997, at

14 10:00 a.m., at the Illinois Pollution Control

15 Board, 600 South Second Street, Suite 402,

16 Springfield, Illinois, before the Honorable Michael

17 L. Wallace, Hearing Officer.

21 Reported by: Darlene M.

Niemeyer, CSR, RPR

CSR License No.: 084-003677

23 KEEFE REPORTING COMPANY

11 North 44th Street

24 Belleville, IL 62226

(618) 277-0190

KEEFE REPORTING COMPANY

Belleville, Illinois

1 A P

P E A R A N C E S

STATE OF ILLINOIS, OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY

3 GENERAL

BY: Amy Jackson, Esq.

4 Assistant Attorney General

Environmental Bureau

5 500 South Second Street

Springfield, Illinois 62706

6 On behalf of the People of the State of

Illinois.

ILLINOIS ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

8 BY: Gregory Richardson, Esq.

Assistant Counsel

9 2200 Churchill Road

Springfield, Illinois 62794-9276

10 On behalf of the Illinois EPA.

KEEFE REPORTING COMPANY

Belleville, Illinois

1 I N D E X

2 WITNESS PAGE NUMBER

3 John S.

Senjan 8, 39, 42

6 E X H I B I T S

7 NUMBER MARKED FOR

I.D. ENTERED

8 People's Exhibit 1 13 16

9 People's Exhibit 2 25 26

KEEFE REPORTING COMPANY

Belleville, Illinois

1 P R O C E

E D I N G S

2 (September 9, 1997; 10:00 a.m.)

3 HEARING OFFICER WALLACE: Pursuant to the

4 direction of the Illinois Pollution Control Board,

5 I now call Docket PCB 97-031. This is the

6 complaint of the People of the State of Illinois

7 versus

Johnnie Mae Hendricks.

8 May I have appearances for the record,

9 please.

10 MS. JACKSON: Amy Jackson, on behalf of

11 the complainant.

12 HEARING OFFICER WALLACE: Thank you. Let

13 the record reflect that notice was given of this

14 hearing to the respondent,

Johnnie Mae Hendricks,

15 both by order of the Hearing Officer and

16 publication by the Clerk of the Pollution Control

17 Board. The publication notice was published in The

18 Staunton Star Times, located in

Staunton, Illinois,

19 giving notice of this hearing on today's date and

20 the Board's Springfield offices. The Hearing

21 Officer has not been contacted by Ms.

Johnnie Mae

22 Hendricks or any representatives from here, and I

23 don't believe the People have either.

24 MS. JACKSON: We have not.

KEEFE REPORTING COMPANY

Belleville, Illinois

1 HEARING OFFICER WALLACE: The rules of

2 the Pollution Control Board allow us to proceed

3 without the respondent. You may proceed, Ms.

4 Jackson.

5 MS. JACKSON: Thank you. Mr. Hearing

6 Officer, I do have a brief opening statement that I

7 would like to make.

8 HEARING OFFICER WALLACE: All right. Go

9 ahead.

10 MS. JACKSON: The People of the State of

11 Illinois come before this Board to present evidence

12 regarding the respondent's operation of an improper

13 tire storage treatment or disposal facility and the

14 violations of the Illinois Environmental Protection

15 Act resulting from such operation. It is important

16 to note at the outset that not only has the

17 respondent failed to appear for this hearing, but

18 she also failed to appear for a Section 31 (d)

19 meeting which was scheduled for June 28, 1996. She

20 has also failed to respond to any attempts by

21 complainant to discuss a resolution of this case.

22 In light of respondent's failure to appear for this

23 hearing, this Board should enter such order as is

24 appropriate pursuant to the directives of Section

KEEFE REPORTING COMPANY

Belleville, Illinois

1 103.220 of the Board's general provisions relating

2 to enforcement proceedings. Despite this default

3 by the respondent, the People will present

4 testimony and evidence sufficient to prove the

5 violations alleged against the respondent and to

6 provide guidance to the Board as to the appropriate

7 remedy in this case.

8 The People will present for the Board's

9 consideration the testimony of John

Senjan,

10 S-E-N-J-A-N, an Environmental Protection Specialist

11 with the Illinois EPA's Bureau of Land Pollution

12 Control. Through John

Senjan's testimony the

13 People will satisfy their burden of proof with

14 regard to the following violations:

15 Number one, the improper disposal of more

16 than 50 used or waste tires on property which is

17 not a sanitary landfill.

18 Number two, the failure to submit

19 required reports to the Illinois EPA.

20 Number three, the failure to comply with

21 the storage and reporting requirements for sites at

22 which more than 10,000 used or waste tires are

23 stored, treated or disposed.

24 Number four, the failure to have a

KEEFE REPORTING COMPANY

Belleville, Illinois

1 contingency plan.

2 Number five, the development and

3 operation of a waste storage or disposal operation

4 without an Illinois EPA issued permit.

5 Number six, causing or allowing the open

6 dumping of used or waste tires.

7 Number seven, causing or allowing

8 litter.

9 Number eight, causing or allowing the

10 open burning of used or waste tires.

11 Number nine, causing, threatening, or

12 allowing the discharge or emission of contaminants

13 into the environment so as to cause or tend to

14 cause air pollution.

15 Number ten, causing, threatening, or

16 allowing the discharge of contaminants into waters

17 of the State so as to cause or tend to cause water

18 pollution.

19 After considering the testimony and

20 evidence, we will ask this Board to find in favor

21 of the complainant, the People of the State of

22 Illinois, and in so finding, we will ask this Board

23 to impose an order requiring the respondent to

24 cease and desist from further violation of the Act

KEEFE REPORTING COMPANY

Belleville, Illinois

1 and associated Board regulations and ordering

2 respondent to pay a reasonable monetary penalty

3 pursuant to the directives of Section 42 (h) and

4 Section 33 (c) of the Illinois Environmental

5 Protection Act. Thank you.

6 HEARING OFFICER WALLACE: All right.

7 Thank you.

8 (Whereupon the witness was

9 sworn by the Hearing Officer.)

10 J O H N S. S E N J A N,

11 having been first duly sworn by the Hearing

12 Officer,

saith as follows:

13 DIRECT EXAMINATION

14 BY MS. JACKSON:

15 Q Please state your name for the record.

16 A John

Senjan.

17 Q Would you spell your last name, please?

18 A S-E-N-J-A-N.

19 Q With whom are you currently employed?

20 A With the IEPA.

21 Q That's the Illinois Environmental

22 Protection Agency?

23 A Yes.

24 Q How long have you been with the IEPA?

KEEFE REPORTING COMPANY

Belleville, Illinois

1 A Approximately five and a half years.

2 Q What position do you currently hold with

3 the Agency?

4 A Environmental Protection Specialist.

5 Q What are your job duties as an

6 Environmental Protection Specialist?

7 A I am a field inspector in solid waste.

8 Primarily, I do tires which include storage sites,

9 disposal facilities, open dumps, complaints, and

10 cleanup work.

11 Q And have you been an Environmental

12 Protection Specialist since joining the Agency?

13 A I started out as a trainee and worked up

14 the ranks to a Specialist III.

15 Q Would you tell us briefly about your

16 educational background?

17 A I have a Biology Degree from Eastern

18 Illinois University. I am currently working on my

19 Master's in Environmental Studies from Southern

20 Illinois University in Edwardsville.

21 Q When did you obtain your Bachelor's in

22 biology from Eastern?

23 A In 1987.

24 Q And do you have an anticipated completion

KEEFE REPORTING COMPANY

Belleville, Illinois

1 date for your Master's in Environmental Studies?

2 A Yes, it will be the fall of 1988.

3 Q Okay. 1998?

4 A 1998, yes.

5 Q Okay. Mr.

Senjan, pursuant to your

6 duties as an Environmental Protection Specialist,

7 have you become familiar with a facility in

8 Macoupin County known as the

Earp, E-A-R-P,

9 property?

10 A Yes.

11 Q How so?

12 A I was called out to do an inspection in

13 1995, and then followed that up with the fire that

14 occurred in 1996.

15 Q Can you describe for us where in

Macoupin

16 County this property is located?

17 A It is approximately one mile south of the

18 Village of White City.

19 Q And what was your first contact with the

20 Earp property, as an Environmental Protection

21 Specialist?

22 A In 1995.

23 Q And you performed an inspection?

24 A I did an inspection, yes.

KEEFE REPORTING COMPANY

Belleville, Illinois

1 Q Who was the owner of the property at that

2 time?

3 A At that time it was

Johnnie Mae

4 Hendricks.

5 Q She is the respondent herein?

6 A Yes.

7 Q How do you know

Johnnie Mae Hendricks was

8 the owner of the property in 1995?

9 A Following the inspection, I went to the

10 Macoupin County Courthouse and retrieved a property

11 deed.

12 Q And from looking at that deed, were you

13 able to determine when the respondent first became

14 the owner of the property?

15 A Yes.

16 Q When was that?

17 A In 1990.

18 Q What is your understanding of the current

19 ownership of this property?

20 A It has been recently purchased by Alton

21 Entertainment.

22 Q Okay. So the respondent, based on your

23 understanding, no longer owns the property?

24 A That's correct.

KEEFE REPORTING COMPANY

Belleville, Illinois

1 Q Have you seen a deed or anything

2 indicating this transfer of ownership?

3 A Yes, I have.

4 Q Who is the current owner, once again?

5 A Alton Entertainment.

6 Q Okay. Have you had any contact with

7 Alton Entertainment regarding the

Earp property.

8 A No, I have not.

9 Q When was it you became aware of this

10 change of ownership?

11 A Approximately one week ago.

12 Q Do you know when the change of ownership

13 occurred?

14 A In March of 1997.

15 Q So just this year?

16 A Just this year.

17 Q Now, you said your initial inspection of

18 this property was in 1995?

19 A Correct.

20 Q Can you give us a more specific date?

21 A I would have to look at my inspection

22 report.

23 Q Okay. If I hand you a copy of your

24 inspection report, will that refresh your

KEEFE REPORTING COMPANY

Belleville, Illinois

1 recollection?

2 A Yes.

3 (Whereupon a document was duly

4 marked for purposes of

5 identification as People's

6 Exhibit 1 as of this date.)

7 Q (By Ms. Jackson) I am going to go ahead

8 and hand you what we have already marked as

9 People's Exhibit 1. Once you have looked at that,

10 does that refresh your recollection?

11 A Yes, it does.

12 Q Can you tell us now what was the date of

13 your initial inspection of this property?

14 A April 7th, 1995.

15 Q Can you tell us what prompted this

16 initial inspection of the property?

17 A This was conducted -- this inspection was

18 conducted as a follow-up inspection to Jim

Conlon,

19 formerly with the Agency, who did an inspection in

20 1990. Jim

Conlon since then left the Agency. His

21 inspection resulted in an administrative warning

22 notice. My inspection was conducted as a follow-up

23 to that.

24 Q Have you reviewed that inspection report

KEEFE REPORTING COMPANY

Belleville, Illinois

1 of Jim

Conlon, C-O-N-L-O-N, prior to going out

2 there in April of 1995?

3 A Yes, I did.

4 Q What did you note of significance from

5 that 1990 inspection?

6 A That virtually nothing had changed since

7 1990.

8 Q Let me go back. What made you -- what

9 prompted the need to go out and

reinspect? What

10 was there in 1990 that required a

reinspection?

11 A In 1990 Jim

Conlon issued an

12 administrative warning notice.

13 Q For what?

14 A For open dumping, primarily tires.

15 Q Did that inspection indicate how many

16 tires were at the facility in 1990?

17 A Yes, approximately 50,000.

18 Q Mr.

Conlon's report is something that

19 would routinely be prepared in the regular course

20 of Agency business, correct?

21 A Yes.

22 Q So in 1990, the inspection report

23 indicated that there were approximately 50,000

24 tires at the facility?

KEEFE REPORTING COMPANY

Belleville, Illinois

1 A Yes.

2 Q Now, the Illinois EPA currently has a

3 tire program, correct?

4 A Yes.

5 Q Did they have that program in 1990?

6 A Yes.

7 Q When did that program originate?

8 A I don't know.

9 Q Are you a part of that program now?

10 A Yes.

11 Q Is it fair to say that the facility, the

12 Earp property, was inspected in conjunction with

13 that program?

14 A Yes.

15 Q Now, when you inspect a tire facility,

16 such as the one at the

Earp property, do you follow

17 a specific protocol?

18 A Yes.

19 Q Can you describe what that is?

20 A Basically walking the site, making a site

21 sketch, taking photographs, interviewing anybody

22 that is on site.

23 Q Did you follow this protocol in the

24 particular instance when you have inspected the

KEEFE REPORTING COMPANY

Belleville, Illinois

1 Earp property?

2 A Yes.

3 Q Did you generate an inspection report?

4 A Yes.

5 Q And that inspection report has been

6 marked as People's Exhibit 1, and that's -- you

7 have that in your hand?

8 A Yes.

9 Q Who prepared the report?

10 A I did.

11 Q And is this a report something that is

12 typically made in the regular course of Illinois

13 EPA business?

14 A Yes.

15 MS. JACKSON: Mr. Hearing Officer, I am

16 going to move to admit People's Exhibit 1 into

17 evidence.

18 HEARING OFFICER WALLACE: People's

19 Exhibit 1 is admitted.

20 MS. JACKSON: Thank you.

21 (Whereupon said document was

22 admitted into the record as

23 People's Exhibit 1 as of this

24 date.)

KEEFE REPORTING COMPANY

Belleville, Illinois

1 Q (By Ms. Jackson) Did you note anything

2 significant about the property during your April

3 1995 inspection?

4 A I noticed that the management standards

5 of the tires were bad.

6 Q How so?

7 A They didn't follow -- they broke many

8 regulations of the Illinois Pollution Control

9 Board, several violations of the Act.

10 Q How many tires were at the facility in

11 1995?

12 A Approximately 50,000.

13 Q How did you make that estimation?

14 A Based on experience.

15 Q You don't actually go out and count each

16 tire?

17 A It is impossible.

18 Q Okay. What types of things do you look

19 for in making that estimation?

20 A First you look at the terrain, the

21 ground. You look at what types of tires you are

22 dealing with. A car tire is a lot smaller than a

23 tractor tire. Then it is basically how much

24 surface area they are covering. There could be

KEEFE REPORTING COMPANY

Belleville, Illinois

1 hidden tires if there was a deep ravine or dip in

2 the earth or something like that.

3 Q Were these car tires mainly?

4 A Primarily.

5 Q Can you describe the appearance of the

6 tires in April of 1995?

7 A The tires were well worn. You could tell

8 they had been sitting there a long time the way

9 that -- the condition of the tires. They were

10 clean from weathering. Many of the side walls were

11 broken. Many of the beads were broken. Most of

12 the tread wear was gone.

13 Q Was there any cover material over the

14 tires?

15 A No.

16 Q What is a used tire?

17 A

A used tire is basically a junk tire that

18 cannot be reused for anything else.

19 Q Would you consider the tires that you

20 observed on the respondent's property in 1995 to be

21 used tires?

22 A Yes.

23 Q Would these tires also be considered a

24 waste?

KEEFE REPORTING COMPANY

Belleville, Illinois

1 A Yes.

2 Q How so?

3 A That they cannot be used. They cannot be

4 reused, as in any sort of way. That is about it.

5 They cannot be reused.

6 Q Did they appear to have been disposed of?

7 A Yes.

8 Q Did the condition of the site concern

9 you, as you observed it in 1995?

10 A Yes.

11 Q How so?

12 A For potential fire. There were no

13 precautions taken to prevent it.

14 Q What types of precautions can be taken to

15 minimize the risk of fire at a facility like this?

16 A Surrounding the site with a fence to

17 prevent unauthorized access, building an earthen

18 berm around the site to prevent any runoff that may

19 occur in case of a fire.

20 Q Now, have you reviewed the Illinois EPA

21 records for this particular facility?

22 A Yes.

23 Q Based on your review of those records, do

24 you know whether this facility was ever issued any

KEEFE REPORTING COMPANY

Belleville, Illinois

1 type of permit for waste disposal?

2 A No, they were not.

3 Q Is this facility a sanitary landfill?

4 A No.

5 Q And according to your review of the

6 Illinois EPA records, has it ever been permitted as

7 a sanitary landfill?

8 A No.

9 Q And yet there was waste deposited at the

10 site?

11 A Yes.

12 Q Did you observe any materials that

13 appeared to have been discarded or littered around

14 the site?

15 A Yes.

16 Q What types of materials?

17 A There was domicile waste and some auto

18 parts, but primarily waste tires.

19 Q In your opinion, had these tires -- did

20 these tires appear to have been abandoned or

21 otherwise disposed of improperly at the facility?

22 A Yes.

23 Q Were these materials consistent with your

24 understanding of the term "litter"?

KEEFE REPORTING COMPANY

Belleville, Illinois

1 A Yes.

2 Q Now, you told us just a minute ago about

3 certain things that a property owner must do when

4 they dispose of or store a certain number of

5 tires. I think you referred to them as management

6 standards.

7 A

Uh-huh.

8 Q Can you give us an example of what those

9 management standards are?

10 A First of all, they would need to supply

11 the Agency with a contingency plan. They would

12 also need to submit certain documentation, such as

13 an annual tire summary, disposal records; and they

14 would have to show that they are using tires in a

15 systematic way of once they bring them in to get

16 rid of them.

17 Q Okay. Has the Illinois EPA ever received

18 an annual tire summary or disposal records from the

19 respondent?

20 A No.

21 Q Have they received any types of reports

22 from the respondent related to this facility?

23 A No.

24 Q Can you explain for us, basically, what a

KEEFE REPORTING COMPANY

Belleville, Illinois

1 contingency plan is?

2 A It has a lot to do with site safety plan

3 in case of a fire who to call. It has to be the --

4 where the exits are, how they will handle a fire.

5 It has to be filed with local fire fighting

6 authorities.

7 Q Are you aware of whether a contingency

8 plan was ever prepared for the respondent's

9 facility?

10 A No.

11 Q You are not aware, or one was never

12 prepared?

13 A One was never prepared, to my knowledge.

14 Q The Illinois EPA does not have such a

15 contingency plan in their records for this

16 facility?

17 A Correct.

18 Q Do the management standards say anything

19 about separation of tires from vegetation?

20 A Yes.

21 Q What is that requirement?

22 A It is 50 feet from grass or brush or

23 overhanging trees.

24 Q Is that a management standard that would

KEEFE REPORTING COMPANY

Belleville, Illinois

1 apply to this particular facility?

2 A Yes.

3 Q Based on your inspection in 1995, had

4 respondent taken measures to insure that the tires

5 were separated from surrounding vegetation by at

6 least 50 feet?

7 A No.

8 Q Do the management standards have any

9 requirements regarding fencing or

berms around the

10 tires?

11 A Yes.

12 Q Can you explain what those requirements

13 are?

14 A It would be a 6 foot fence with

15 controlled access, completely surrounding the

16 fence, monitored at all times. And an earthen

berm

17 of no less than two feet in height completely

18 surrounding the site.

19 Q So the fence would need to be completely

20 surrounding the facility?

21 A True.

22 Q And the

berm would also?

23 A Yes.

24 Q Was there a fence surrounding

KEEFE REPORTING COMPANY

Belleville, Illinois

1 respondent's facility in 1995?

2 A No.

3 Q Was there a 2 foot earthen

berm

4 surrounding the respondent's facility in 1995?

5 A No.

6 Q Do you know whether respondent was ever

7 made aware of these deficiencies, as noted by you

8 in 1995?

9 A Yes.

10 Q How do you know that?

11 A Because I marked them on a checklist that

12 was sent to the respondent.

13 Q What are -- are there any risks

14 associated with failing to comply with these

15 management standards?

16 A Yes.

17 Q What are those risks?

18 A Potential infestation of disease vectors

19 and more importantly, probably fire.

20 Q In fact, didn't a fire occur at this

21 facility?

22 A Yes.

23 Q When did that fire occur?

24 A In 1996.

KEEFE REPORTING COMPANY

Belleville, Illinois

1 Q Do you know how the fire started in 1996?

2 A Yes.

3 Q Can you explain for us that?

4 A Yes. According to the local fire

5 fighting officials, the fire began in a rubbish

6 pile, and it spread quickly to a shed. The fire

7 fighters were concerned that the shed would -- the

8 wind was blowing towards the house. They were

9 afraid the fire would spread to the house. In the

10 process it did jump to the tires, and the tires

11 were completely engulfed in a matter of minutes.

12 Q We don't have any indication today as to

13 what initially started that fire?

14 A No.

15 Q And we are not presenting evidence that

16 the respondent started the fire, are we?

17 A No.

18 Q Were you present at all during the fire?

19 A Yes.

20 (Whereupon a document was duly

21 marked for purposes of

22 identification as People's

23 Exhibit 2 as of this date.)

24 Q (By Ms. Jackson) I am going to hand you

KEEFE REPORTING COMPANY

Belleville, Illinois

1 what we have already marked as People's Exhibit

2 Number 2.

3 A Okay.

4 Q I am going to ask that you confirm that

5 that is a copy of your report from April 9 of

6 1996.

7 A Yes.

8 Q Is April 9, 1996, the day the fire

9 started?

10 A Yes.

11 Q Who prepared this report that is People's

12 Exhibit Number 2?

13 A I did.

14 Q Is this the type of report that is

15 typically made in the regular course of Illinois

16 EPA business?

17 A Yes.

18 MS. JACKSON: I would move that People's

19 Exhibit 2 be entered into evidence.

20 HEARING OFFICER WALLACE: People's

21 Exhibit Number 2 is admitted.

22 (Whereupon said document was

23 admitted into the record as

24 People's Exhibit 2 as of this

KEEFE REPORTING COMPANY

Belleville, Illinois

1 date.)

2 Q (By Ms. Jackson) Are there photographs

3 attached to that report?

4 A Yes.

5 Q Did you take those photographs?

6 A Yes.

7 Q Are those photographs -- if you take a

8 minute just to look at them quickly, are they true

9 and accurate representations of what you observed

10 on April 9, 1996?

11 A Yes.

12 Q John, can you describe for us what you

13 observed with regard to the fire on that date? And

14 if you need to, please refer to your photographs.

15 A Okay. If you look at the very first

16 photograph, roll 115, photo number one, it is taken

17 -- I was working the tire collection in

18 Litchfield, Illinois, and I got a call that there

19 was a tire fire at the

Earp site. I took this

20 photograph from

Litchfield, and it is approximately

21 14 to 15 miles away from the site, as you can see

22 the smoke from -- as you continue to go through, I

23 am getting closer to the site. I am taking these

24 photographs from my vehicle, as I traveled to the

KEEFE REPORTING COMPANY

Belleville, Illinois

1 site.

2 Q Can you tell us which photographs you are

3 talking about?

4 A Yes. Again, starting with roll 115,

5 photo number one, and then as you go through the

6 same roll photo two, the same roll, photo three,

7 photo four. If you look at roll 115, photo number

8 twelve, that was when I arrived at the site. This

9 was taken across a grass field. I think you can

10 see the size of the smoke plume, if you look in the

11 lower left-hand corner that -- that is a fire

12 truck, and you can see the relation of the smoke

13 when compared to the fire truck. It is quite

14 large.

15 Q Were you able to determine -- now, you

16 actually went up to the site on that day, correct?

17 A Yes.

18 Q Were you able to determine how many tires

19 were consumed?

20 A Yes.

21 Q How many, approximately?

22 A Approximately -- I found that out on the

23 second day.

24 Q Okay.

KEEFE REPORTING COMPANY

Belleville, Illinois

1 A I returned to the site on April 10 to

2 investigate, and I would say 99 percent of the

3 tires were consumed.

4 Q Now, you told us in 1995 you estimated

5 that there were approximately 50,000 used tires?

6 A Yes.

7 Q Did that -- did the total number of tires

8 that were at the site change at all, based on your

9 observations in April of 1996?

10 A Yes, it did.

11 Q How so?

12 A I believe that there were fewer tires

13 than originally estimated.

14 Q How many?

15 A I estimated between 30,000 and 40,000.

16 Q Okay. So still in excess of 10,000

17 tires?

18 A Yes.

19 Q Who responded to the fire?

20 A The first respondent was the Mount Olive

21 Fire Department. After that there were six or

22 seven other fire departments that responded;

23 Dorsey, Bunker Hill,

Staunton, Litchfield, and a

24 few others that I can't really remember.

KEEFE REPORTING COMPANY

Belleville, Illinois

1 Q Were these emergency response teams able

2 to control the fire?

3 A No, they were not.

4 Q Why not?

5 A The fire was too well engulfed, and it

6 was too hot. They did not have the efficient

7 equipment to put out the fire.

8 Q So what happened to the fire?

9 A Well, they basically put on all the water

10 that they could carry to the site, and it didn't

11 work. Then finally we made the decision -- Jim

12 Pitchford and I -- Jim

Pitchford works for the

13 Macoupin County Emergency Response. We made the

14 decision to have the fire fighters stop applying

15 water, because it was doing no good, and we let the

16 fire burn.

17 Q You said that they brought all the water

18 -- they used all the water they could bring to the

19 site. Do you have any idea how much water that

20 was?

21 A Several thousand gallons. That's all I

22 can say.

23 Q And if the water was not helping to put

24 out the fire, what was happening to the water?

KEEFE REPORTING COMPANY

Belleville, Illinois

1 A Some of the water was visible departing

2 the site as steam, because the fire was so hot that

3 when the water hit the tires it would turn into

4 vapor. Later, as the day progressed, I was able to

5 approach the fire from the east when the wind was

6 blowing out of east so that the smoke was not on

7 me, and I noticed that a lot of the water was

8 coming from -- the water actually went through the

9 tires and was dissipating directly from underneath

10 the tires, running off, free-flowing.

11 Q So there was water running off from the

12 pile of tires?

13 A Yes.

14 Q Where was this runoff going?

15 A The runoff -- the tires were -- a large

16 pile of the tires were located in a crevice that

17 led into a small creek. It was a natural flow, and

18 the water was running from the tire pile directly

19 into a small creek which led to the

Staunton

20 Reservoir.

21 Q When you saw this runoff leaving the

22 burning tires and entering this creek that led to

23 the

Staunton Reservoir, were you concerned at all

24 about that?

KEEFE REPORTING COMPANY

Belleville, Illinois

1 A Yes, that was my first concern. The

2 Staunton Reservoir is drinking supply for the City

3 of

Staunton.

4 Q Was there anything being done to prevent

5 this runoff from entering the creek?

6 A Not at that time.

7 Q In fact, is that one of the things that a

8 berm, an earthen

berm would be used for?

9 A Yes.

10 Q And there were no earthen

berms on this

11 date?

12 A Correct.

13 Q Now, John, you are familiar with the

14 definition of a Water of the State, aren't you?

15 A Yes.

16 Q Would this creek that you are talking

17 being about be considered a Water of the State in

18 your opinion?

19 A Yes.

20 Q Are you also familiar with the

21 regulations prohibiting water pollution?

22 A Yes.

23 Q In your opinion, would the runoff from

24 this tire fire be of such a nature and extent as to

KEEFE REPORTING COMPANY

Belleville, Illinois

1 cause or tend to cause water pollution?

2 A Yes.

3 Q How so?

4 A When a tire does not combust completely,

5 it has a tendency to melt. A tire is composed of

6 primarily oil. When it melts, the oil can flow

7 right into the water, and what other properties

8 that are picked into the tire can also melt into

9 the oil.

10 Q And you were concerned that that

11 contaminated runoff was then entering the receiving

12 creek?

13 A Yes.

14 Q Okay. Now, aside from this discharge of

15 runoff into the drainage creek, there was also a

16 discharge of smoke into the atmosphere, correct?

17 A That's correct.

18 Q That is visible in some of the

19 photographs you have referred to?

20 A Yes.

21 Q Can you describe for us the appearance to

22 you on that day of the smoke?

23 A Thick and black.

24 Q Was it difficult to breathe?

KEEFE REPORTING COMPANY

Belleville, Illinois

1 A If you were in the smoke plume, yes.

2 Q And were you in the smoke?

3 A No.

4 Q Did the fire fighters wear respirators?

5 A Yes, they did. The ones that didn't

6 complained of the smoke.

7 Q Do you know how many -- you said the fire

8 just was allowed to burn itself out?

9 A Yes.

10 Q Do you know how many days it took for

11 this fire to burn itself out?

12 A By the second day it was primarily burnt

13 out. There was still some smoldering hot spots.

14 Q Did you have an occasion to revisit the

15 site on approximately April 16th or 17th for a

16 follow-up inspection?

17 A Yes, I did.

18 Q At that time was the fire smoldering at

19 all?

20 A Yes, there were still spots that were

21 smoldering.

22 Q Was this fire or the smoke contained in

23 any way?

24 A No, it was not.

KEEFE REPORTING COMPANY

Belleville, Illinois

1 Q Now, you are familiar with regulations

2 regarding air pollution, are you not?

3 A Yes.

4 Q In your opinion, was the discharge of

5 smoke from this tire fire of such a nature and

6 extent as to cause or tend to cause air pollution?

7 A Yes.

8 Q Can you explain why?

9 A Because I am familiar with the properties

10 that compose a tire. I know there are several

11 carcinogens in a tire, and when it becomes airborne

12 it is released into the atmosphere.

13 Q What are those carcinogens?

14 A I don't know exactly.

15 Q Okay. Are there other constituents that

16 you can name today that would be typically found in

17 smoke from a tire fire or emissions from a tire

18 fire?

19 A Lead. Without looking at my research

20 back in my office I couldn't say.

21 Q Okay. Were you able to observe whether

22 any surrounding plant or animal life was impacted

23 by this fire?

24 A Yes.

KEEFE REPORTING COMPANY

Belleville, Illinois

1 Q Was there an impact?

2 A Yes. The woods that lay to the east,

3 southeast and south of the tires became -- were on

4 fire. As I went and looked for water

5 contamination, I ran into the entire

Litchfield

6 Fire Department who were out in the woods fighting

7 the brush fire.

8 Q Were there some trees that were destroyed

9 by the fire?

10 A Yes.

11 Q Do you have any idea how many?

12 A No.

13 Q In your opinion, John, could this fire

14 and the resulting damage have been mitigated in any

15 way?

16 A Yes.

17 Q How so?

18 A By using management standards at the tire

19 site such as the earthen

berm.

20 Q Did the lack of a contingency plan also

21 play a role in the resulting damage from the fire?

22 A Possibly.

23 Q Once the fire had burned out, was there

24 anything left of the 30,000 to 40,000 tires that

KEEFE REPORTING COMPANY

Belleville, Illinois

1 were estimated at the site?

2 A Yes.

3 Q What?

4 A

A lot of tire-derived wire and steel

5 rims.

6 Q Would it be unusual to see steel rims

7 remaining after -- are used tires still on rims

8 when they are disposed of?

9 A In a typical tire pile like this it is

10 not unusual to find several hundred, if not several

11 thousand, tires still mounted on rims.

12 Q So it was not unusual to find rims

13 remaining after this fire?

14 A No.

15 Q Do you know what was done with these

16 rims?

17 A Yes. The people living in the

Hendricks

18 household took the rims and they piled them in a

19 pickup truck and they took them to a local scrap

20 yard and sold them.

21 Q Do you know how much of the rims -- is

22 there a going price?

23 A At that time it was approximately $7.00 a

24 ton.

KEEFE REPORTING COMPANY

Belleville, Illinois

1 Q Do you know how many tons of rims were

2 left at the site?

3 A No, I do not.

4 Q To the best of your knowledge, did they

5 sell all of these remaining rims, then?

6 A Yes.

7 Q Do you know what was done with that money

8 that they made from selling the rims?

9 A No.

10 Q And, finally, has the respondent been the

11 subject of any other enforcement actions by the

12 Illinois EPA at this particular facility?

13 A No.

14 Q Okay. Just a couple of questions to

15 follow up and clarify. We talked about these used

16 tires being on rims, that there may have been some

17 on rims?

18 A Yes.

19 Q Would it be fair to say that a vast

20 majority of the tires you observed were off of the

21 rims?

22 A Yes.

23 Q And then we have been calling this

24 facility the

Earp property. Do you know why it has

KEEFE REPORTING COMPANY

Belleville, Illinois

1 been referred to as the

Earp property?

2 A The original owner was a gentleman called

3 J. T.

Earp.

4 Q That's where the name came from?

5 A Yes.

6 Q Do you know did the respondent,

Johnnie

7 Mae Hendricks, obtain the property from Mr.

Earp?

8 A Yes, according to the property deed that

9 I found in 1990.

10 Q Okay.

11 A She had obtained it from Mr.

Earp.

12 MS. JACKSON: Okay. Thank you.

13 EXAMINATION

14 BY HEARING OFFICER WALLACE:

15 Q Mr.

Senjan, do you know who placed the

16 tires there?

17 A Yes, it was Mr.

Earp.

18 Q And did he operate any kind of --

19 A He had a salvage yard.

20 Q Is that what it was?

21 A

A salvage yard, slash scrap yard, slash

22 junkyard.

23 Q At this

Earp property?

24 A Yes.

KEEFE REPORTING COMPANY

Belleville, Illinois

1 Q Okay. Had there been any removal of any

2 of the tires at all over the past several years?

3 A Not to my knowledge.

4 Q And it is your understanding that the

5 current respondent,

Johnnie Mae Hendricks,

6 purchased the property with the tires on it?

7 A Yes.

8 Q The respondent, did she live on this

9 property, or do you know?

10 A During the fire or --

11 Q Well, say, from the time she purchased it

12 in 1990 until the fire in 1996, do you know if --

13 A Yes.

14 Q She did reside on the property?

15 A I know for sure in 1995 and 1996 she was

16 there. I believe in 1990 she was there, but I

17 wasn't there for sure myself.

18 Q You spoke with her on your first

19 inspection?

20 A Yes.

21 Q In your estimation, since you have done

22 two inspections, did the respondent make any

23 attempt to cooperate and do any removal at all?

24 A She was more than willing to get rid of

KEEFE REPORTING COMPANY

Belleville, Illinois

1 the tires, but she didn't have the financial means

2 to do so.

3 Q Does the Agency have any programs for

4 such a situation?

5 A We do have a program, but we only allow a

6 person to bring up to 1,000 tires to one of our

7 collections, or we may even go pick up. But it is

8 only 1,000. It was well in excess of 1,000.

9 Usually, it is only the last 1,000 we will take.

10 Q Did you or anyone from the Agency have

11 any plan, work with her in any way --

12 A Yes.

13 Q -- that you know of?

14 A We were in the process of I guess you

15 would say filing for a Section 55(3)(d) of the Act,

16 or we were going to do an enforcement clean up on

17 the property or the Agency was going to clean up

18 the whole thing. But it -- we were in the process

19 of it, and it never got done before the fire

20 occurred.

21 Q Was the residue of the fire cleaned up at

22 all?

23 A I do not know.

24 Q You have not been out there since the

KEEFE REPORTING COMPANY

Belleville, Illinois

1 fire?

2 A No, I haven't.

3 Q Would there have been a large mass of

4 black, oily material left on the ground?

5 A Immediately following the fire,

6 approximately one week after, when I went there

7 again, there was -- the ground was absolutely

8 scorched black, from definite residue from the fire

9 and tire wire everywhere, wherever the tires laid.

10 I made the comment that it was neat to see tires

11 completely burned. There wasn't a half tire or

12 part of a tire. They were just gone. It burned

13 that hot.

14 Q It is certainly not the recommended

15 disposal method, right?

16 A No.

17 HEARING OFFICER WALLACE: All right.

18 Thank you, Mr.

Senjan.

19 Anything further?

20 REDIRECT EXAMINATION

21 BY MS. JACKSON:

22 Q Just to clarify, are you familiar with

23 the relationship between Mr.

Earp and the

24 respondent?

KEEFE REPORTING COMPANY

Belleville, Illinois

1 A Yes, Mr.

Earp was her father.

2 Q Do you know whether, in the Illinois EPA

3 files that you have reviewed, whether Mr.

Earp was

4 ever issued any permits for this facility?

5 A No, he was not issued any permits for

6 landfilling or tire storage or anything of that

7 nature.

8 Q Okay. Do you know whether Ms.

Hendricks

9 resided on this property prior to 1990?

10 A I do not know.

11 MS. JACKSON: Okay. That's it.

12 HEARING OFFICER WALLACE: All right.

13 Thank you, Mr.

Senjan.

14 Any further evidence?

15 MS. JACKSON: That's all we have.

16 HEARING OFFICER WALLACE: All right. Do

17 you wish to file any post hearing?

18 MS. JACKSON: I would like to file just a

19 short brief just to clarify some of the issues.

20 HEARING OFFICER WALLACE: All right.

21 Let's go off the record.

22 (Discussion off the record.)

23 HEARING OFFICER WALLACE: Back on the

24 record.

KEEFE REPORTING COMPANY

Belleville, Illinois

1 The People have requested to file a short

2 post hearing brief, and 30 days will be allowed

3 from the time the transcript is back.

4 Pursuant to the rules, I find no

5 credibility problems with Mr.

Senjan's testimony.

6 The two exhibits are admitted, and this record is

7 closed. Thank you.

8 (Exhibits 1 and 2 were retained

9 by Hearing Officer Wallace.)

KEEFE REPORTING COMPANY

Belleville, Illinois

1 STATE OF ILLINOIS )

) SS

2 COUNTY OF MONTGOMERY)

3 C E R T I F I C A T E

5 I, DARLENE M. NIEMEYER, a Notary Public

6 in and for the County of Montgomery, State of

7 Illinois, DO HEREBY CERTIFY that the foregoing 44

8 pages comprise a true, complete, and correct

9 transcript of the proceedings held on the 9th of

10 September

A.D., 1997, at 600 South Second Street,

11 Suite 402, Springfield, Illinois, in the case of

12 The People of the State of Illinois v.

Johnnie Mae

13 Hendricks, in proceedings held before the Honorable

14 Michael L. Wallace, Hearing Officer, and recorded

15 in machine shorthand by me.

16 IN WITNESS WHEREOF I have hereunto set my

17 hand and affixed my

Notarial Seal this 18th day of

18 September

A.D., 1997.

Notary Public and

21 Certified Shorthand Reporter and

Registered Professional Reporter

CSR License No. 084-003677

23 My Commission Expires: 03-02-99

KEEFE REPORTING COMPANY

Belleville, Illinois