ILLINOIS POLLUTION CONTROL BOARD

December

5,

1985

IN

THE

MATTER OF:

PROPOSED AMENDMENTS TO

)

R85-29

SUBTITLE

C:

WATER POLLUTION,

35

ILL.

ADM. CODE 304.121

DENIAL OF EMERGENCY RULE.

PROPOSAL FOR PERMANENT RULE.

ORDER OF THE BOARD

(by J.D.

Dumelle):

This matter comes before the Board upon a November

8,

1985

motion

for Emergency Rulemaking

filed by Bloomington and Normal

Sanitary District

(BNSD)

and

the Illinois Association of Sanitary

Districts

(IASD).

Responses were

filed by Illinois Environmental

Protection Agency, Northern Illinois Planning Commission and

United States Environmental Protection Agency on December

4,

1985.

BNSD and IASD urge

the Board

to adopt

an emergency

amendment to

35

Ill.

Adm. Code 304.121

(bacteria)

to establish

effluent disinfection on

a seasonal basis pursuant

to Section

27(c)

of the Environmental Protection Act

(Act)

and 5.02 of the

Illinois Administrative Procedure Act

(APA).

Such emergency rule

would

be effective

for 150 days.

That motion

is hereby denied.

Summary of Motion

In support of their motion, BNSD and IASD made several

allegations which

are set forth below.

They alleged that the

First District Appellate Court upheld

the Board’s repeal

of the

fecal

coliform water quality standard for secondary contact

waters, thereby holding that disinfection of fecal coliform

bacteria will no longer be required of secondary contact

waters.

The People of the State of Illinois

v. The

Illinois

Pollution Control Board, et al.,

119 Ill. App.3d

561,

75

Ill.

Dec.

88, 456 N.E.2d 909; November

1983.

During

the months of

November through April,

the general use waters

of

the State

are

not used

for primary contact

(e.g., swimming and wading).

Since

the fecal coliform standard was established primarily to protect

human health,

there appears

to be little reason to impose such a

standard during

the winter months when

the potential

for primary

contact

is greatly reduced.

The total annual cost of

disinfecting the final effluents of approximately 1,400

municipal,

industrial

and commercial

treatment plants

is over 4.0

million dollars, placing

an unnecessary financial burden on these

facilities.

Further, BNSD and IASD alleged that the environmental

impacts

of effluent disinfection with chlorine include production

of chlorinated hydrocarbons which have been

found

to be

carcinogenic and may enter drinking water supplies,

air emissions

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of chloroform which will be listed

by the United States

Environmental Protection Agency as

a hazardous air

pollutant,

adverse effects upon aquatic life due

to

the presence

of residual

chlorine

in effluents and safety hazards

to treatment facility

workers and the surrounding community •if

an accidental

release

of

chlorine gas occurs.

It was also alleged that because of potable

water

treatment plants,

no measurable

risk exists

from bacteria

and viruses

in drinking water as a result of discontinuing

effluent disinfection.

Lastly,

BNSD and IASD alleged that

if

a season

of

non—chlorination were established, then necessary maintenance

and

repair

of existing chlorination systems could

be

scheduled and

completed during such a season.

Moreover,

since secondary

contact standards only apply to Chicago area streams,

a seasonal

non—chlorination period needs to be established

to afford

downstate areas

the opportunity

for relief similar

to that

in

the

Chicago

area.

Procedural History

In 1977,

the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency

proposed amendments

to the water pollution regulations which

eliminated

the

fecal coliform water quality standard for general

use and secondary contact waters

(35 Ill.

Adxn.

Code 302.209 and

302.406) and amended

the corresponding effluent standard

(35 Ill.

Adm.

Code 304.121).

The Board docketed the proposed amendments

in R77—l2D, held ten public hearings throughout

the state

and

received extensive public comments.

On October

14,

1982,

the

Board adopted the Agency’s proposed amendments.

In November

1983,

the First District Appellate Court

reversed

the Board’s

repeal

of the fecal coliform water quality

standard

for general

use waters and the amendment of the fecal

coliform effluent standard.

The court, however, affirmed

the

Board’s order

repealing the

fecal coliform water

quality standard

for

secondary contact waters.

The Illinois Supreme Court

upheld

this action

in October

1984.

Subsequently,

the Board on

August

1,

1985,

by peremptory rulemaking

readopted the

fecal

coliform water quality and effluent standard but did

not file the

rules with the Secretary of State, since

it became aware that the

proposed amendments exceeded what was required under

the courts’

orders.

On November 21,

1985,

the Board

by peremptory rulemaking

revised

the fecal coliform effluent standard

to exclude its

applicability to secondary contact waters

and readopted the fecal

coliform water quality standard

for general

use waters.

The Board believes that BNSD and IASD have failed

to

demonstrate that an emergency exists.

While they have made

various unverified allegations which,

if proven, could perhaps

support

the adoption of a permanent rule,

those allegations

cannot simply be accepted

as true

in order

to support

a finding

that an emergency exists.

67-56

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—3-

The Board does, however, believe that the question of

seasonal disinfection deserves to be considered further and

will

open docket R85-29 which will include a seasonal chlorination

proposal consistent with the BNSD and IASD proposal.

However, it

goes beyond that proposal

in that language has been added to

mitigate possible damage to aquatic life from recommencement of

chlorination in the spring.

The Board realizes that seasonal chlorination could result

in fish kills when chlorination is resumed in May.

With

year-round chlorination most fish will avoid

the chlorinated

stream reach.

However, with seasonal chlorination the fish will

not avoid those stream reaches during the winter months and could

be

subject to

sudden lethal slugs of chlorine.

Therefore,

the

Board

is including a directive in the rule which requires that

when facilities recommence disinfection, they shall do

so

in such

a way so as to minimize any potential adverse effect on aquatic

life.

This provision

is included to assure that the Agency has

the ability to include permit conditions to effectuate that goal.

Furthermore,

while

the BNSD and IASD have requested only

that

35 Iii. Adm. Code 304.121

be amended (General Effluent

Standards:

Bacteria),

the Board believes

that complete relief can

only be given if

35 Ill. Adm. Code 302.209

(General Use Water

Quality Standards:

Feca.

Coliform) is similarly amended to be

effective only during the summer months1

Therefore,

the Board

proposes amendments to both sections.

The Board

notes that BNSD and IASD have indicated a desire

for regulatory change which would go beyond

the implementation of

seasonal disinfection and establish some mechanism (such as an

“exception procedure”

similar to procedures presently in place

regarding combined sewer overflows) which would allow for

year-round relief, where appropriate.

The Board

invites BNSD,

IASD,

or any other interested person or group to file proposals

alternative

to or in addition to the proposed language

that is

set forth in this Order.

The Board hereby proposes the following amendments:

TITLE 35:

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION

SUBTITLE

C:

WATER POLLUTION

CHAPTER 1:

POLLUTION CONTROL BOARD

PART 302

WATER QUALITY STANDARDS

SUBPART B:

GENERAL USE WATER QUALITY STANDARDS

Section 302.209

Fecal Coliform

During the months of May through October, bBased on

a. minimum of

five samples taken over not more than a 3OThay period, fecal

coliforms (STORET number 31616)

shall not exceed

a geometric mean

67-57

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-4-

of 200 per 100 ml,

nor shall more than 10

of the samples during

any

30 day period exceed 400 per 100 ml.

PART 304

EFFLUENT STANDARDS

SUBPART

A:

GENERAL EFFLUENT STANDARDS

Section 304.121

Bacteria

During the months of May through October,

no effluent governed by

this Part which discharges to general use waters

shall exceed 400

fecal coliform per 100 ml.

Any facility which ceases

disinfection during November through April

shall recommence

disinfection in such

a manner

so as to minimize any potential

adverse effect on aquatic life.

IT IS SO ORDERED.

I,

Dorothy

M. Gunn, Clerk of the Illinois Pollution Control

Board, hereby certify that the above Emergency Order was adopted

on the

e5t~

day of

~4~-4~-

,

1985 by

a vote of 7—~

~h.

/L-~/

Dorothy N. Gunn, Clerk

—

Illinois Pollution Control Board

67-58