ILLINOIS POLLUTION CONTROL BOARD

March

20, 1980

MOBIL CHEMICAL COMPANY,

Petitioner,

V.

P03 80~l

ENVIRONMENT7’L

PROTECTION AGENCY,

Respondent.

OPINION AND ORDER OF THE BOARD (by Dr. Satchell)

This matter comes before the Board upon a petition arid

amended petition for variance filed January 2 and January 21, 1980

by Mobil Chemical Company (Mobil). The p etition rec~uescs a vari-~

ance from the effluent standard for total dissolved solids (TDS)

which is contained in Rule 408(b) of Chanter 3: Water Po:Llution.

On February 27, 1980 the Environmental Protection Agency (Agency)

recommended that the variance he granted with conditions, Hearing

was waived and no public comment has been received.

Mobil has a facility in Joliet, Wil:L County, which manu~

factures styrene, acrylonitrile and butadiene~hased

copolyrier

resins. The Board previously granted this facility a variance

from Rule 408(b) (Rexene Stvrenics Co. v. EPA, PIlL 78-48, 30 PIll

535, June

22, 1978T~

Mobil acquired Rexene~soperation on May ~

1978. The variance is to expire on June 22, 1980 or upon adoption

of the proposed deletion of Rule 408(b) in R76*21, Mobil presently

has NPDES permit IL 0001619 which expires March 31, 1981. Mobil

has requested extension of

the

previous variance to the date of

expiration of the permit. At Mohil~s request the record in the

orevious case will he incorporated by reference.

Rule 408(b) sets an upper limit of 3500 rng/l for TDS discharges.

Mobiles discharge exceeds this level even though process water is

recycled or treated in an activated sludge unit prior to discharge

to the Des Plaines River. The maximum daily discharge under the

previous variance was 15,000 pounds (6800 kg)

of

dissolved solids

per day. The Agency does not deny Mohil7s assertion that this

would have no

significant effect on water quality in

the river.

The Board finds that, for the same reasons as set forth in

ins Opinion and Order of June 22, 1978, denial of the recuested

variance exten~ion would impose an arbitrary and unreasonable binS-

ship,

---

—2—

This Opinion constitutes the Board~s findings of fact and

conclusions of law in this matter.

ORDER

Petitioner Mobil Chemical Company is granted a

variance from

Rule 408(b) of Chanter 3: Water Pollution for its polymer

manu-

facturing facility in Joliet, subject to the following conditions:

1. This variance will expire on March 31, 1981 or

upon

adoption of a Final Order modifying Rule 408(b)

of

Chapter 3 in R76—21, whichever occurs first.

2. During the period of

this

variance Petitioner shall

not

discharge more than 15,000 pounds per day of total

dissolved solids.

3. The A~jency, pursuant to Rule 914 of Chapter 3:

Water

Pollution, shall modify the NPDES Permit IL 0001619

consistent with the conditions set forth in this Order,

4. Within forty-five days of the date of

this

Order,

Petitioner shall execute and forward to the Illinois

Environmental Protection Agency, Variance Section,

2200 Churchill Road, Springfield, Illinois 62706, a

Certificate of Acceptance and Agreement to be

bound

to all terms and conditions of this variance,

This

forty-five day period shall be held in abeyance for

any

period this matter is being appealed. The form

of the Certificate shall be as follows:

CERTIFICATION

I

,

(We)

,

___________________________________________________________

,

havino

read and fully understanding the Order in P03 80-1,

hereby accept that Order and agree to be hound

by

all

of

its terms and conditions.

SIGNED

TI TLE

DATE

IT IS

SO ORDERED.

---

I, Christan L. Moffett, Clerk of the Illinois

Pollution

Control Board, hereby certify

the

above pinion and Order

were

adopted on the

__________

day of

_______________,

1980 by a

vote of 4-p

.

Illinois

Control Board