ILLINOIS

POLLUTION

CONTROL

BOARD

November

19,

1987

ILLINOIS ENVIRONMENTAL

PROTECTION

AGENCY,

Complainant,

v.

)

PCB 86—136

PAR STEEL PRODUCTS AND

SERVICE,

CO.

INC.,

an Illinois Corporation,

Respondent.

DISSENTING OPINION

(by

3. Theodore Meyer):

I dissent from the majority’s

acceptance

of the settlement

stipulation.

Neither

the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency

(Agency)

nor the Attorney General

has promulgated any standards

as

to what factors

should be

considered when negotiating

a fine

to be imposed pursuant

to

a settlement agreement.

I believe that

the $5000

fine agreed upon

in the instant

case

is not

sufficient.

If this enforcement action had been brought by

a

State’s Attorney or by the Attorney General

in the name

of the

people

of

the State

of Illinois, Respondent could have

been

assessed costs

and reasonable attorney’s

fees.

Ill.

Rev.

Stat.

1985,

ch.

11l1./2, par.

1042(f).

I am concerned

that

the instant

fine does

not even cover

the Agency’s costs

and fees.

Additionally, the proposed settlement includes no

information

on the amount

of money Respondent may have saved by

not complying with the Act and the Board’s

regulations.

Respondent may have realized quite

a savings by failing

to use

the appropriate

controls,

and the $5000

fine may be merely

a

“drop

in the bucket”

compared with those savings.

Such a low

fine

in the face

of possibly

large savings through non—compliance

does not encourage the regulated community to comply with

the Act

and the Board’s regulations.

For

these

reasons,

I dissent.

~-Th

J. Theodore Meyer

Board Member

83—45

---

—2—

I,

Dorothy M.

Gunn,

Clerk of

the Illinois Pollution Control

Board,

hereb

certify

that the above Dissenting Opinion was filed

on

the

______

day of

_________________,

1987.

Dorothy

M. Gunn,

Clerk

Illinois Pollution Control Board

83—46