ILLINOIS POLLUTION CONTROL BOARD

March

22,

1971

MILES LABORATORIES,

INC.

v.

)

PCB~t7O—5l

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY)

Supplemental Opinion of the Board

(by Mr.

Currie):

On March

3 we denied this petition

for variance,

finding that

since

Miles

burns

coal

in

its daily operations

it would impose no

unreasonable hardship to require

the

company

to

replace

its

current

stockpile

of

coal

containing

slightly

more

than

1

sulfur

with

coal

meeting

the

amended

episode

regulations.

Miles

has

written

for

clarification,

asking

whether

we

considered

an

amended

petition

as

well

as

the

original.

The

amended

petition

calculates

the

sulfur

in

the

coal

at

1.12

rather

than

the

original

1.16,

which

we

deem

unimportant.

It

also

says

the

company

does

not

normally

stockpile

coal

but burns

it

as

received,

so

that

replacing

the

present

supply

will

impose

additiona

costs.

We do not think this added cost enough

to justify

the added

pounds of sulfur dioxide that

a variance would allow

to

he

put.

into

the

air

at

a

time

when

it

is

least

tolerable.

it

is

argued

that

because

of

its

relatively

high

btu

content

the

present

coal

supply

will

produce

no

more

sulfur

dioxide

per

unit

of

heat

than

would

a

hypothetical

cleaner but less efficient coal.

This points up

the

desirability

of

drafting

future

regulations

in

terms

of

502

emissions

rather

than

sulfur

content

in

the

fuel,

but

there

is

no

showing

that

the

actual

alternative

to episode use

of

the

present coal

is the

burning of the hypothetical

coal described.

We cannot therefore

say that compliance will actually be no better than

the burning of

the present

supply.

We reaffirm our original denial of the petition.

I,

Regina

B.

Ryan,

do hereby certify that

the above opinion has

been approved this

~

day of

i~-~-~4~

,

1971.

REGINA

E.

RYAN

CLERIK OF THE HOARD

1

—