ILLINOIS POLLUTION

CONTROL

BOARD

January 9,

1986

FEDDERS—USA,

Petitioner,

v.

)

PCB 83—47

ILLINOIS

ENVIRONMENTAL

PROTECTION

AGENCY,

)

Respondent.

MR. JEFFERY FORT AND M. MS. THERESE YASDICK, MARTIN, CRAIG,

CHESTER

& SONNENSCHEIN APPEARED FOR PETITIONER;

MR. WILLIAM INGERSOLL AND

MS.

SUSAN SCHNEIDER, APPEARED FOR

RESPONDENT.

OPINION AND ORDER OF THE BOARD

(by J.D.

Dumelle):

This matter comes before the Board

upon an April

11, 1985

Second Amended Petition for Variance filed

on behalf

of Fedders—

USA.

Fedders

seeks variance from 35

Ill. Adm.

Code 215.204(h)

which limits the amount of volatile organic material

(VOM)

delivered

to the coating applicator

for Large Appliance Coating

to

2.8

lbs./gal.

Fedders requests that the variance

run from

October

1,

1962

to April

1, 1986.

(Second Amend. Pet.

p.

1).

The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency

(Agency) filed

its

recommendation

on May 20,

1985,

advising that the variance

be

denied.

Hearing was held

on August

28,

1985 and briefs were

filed

by Fedders

and the Agency on October

16

and December

3,

1985,

respectively.

Fedders

operates

a plant

in Effingham,

Illinois which

contains 1.1 million square feet of floor

space

and employs

approximately 700 people

in the production

of room air

conditioners.

A portion

of the external metal parts used

in

constructing

the air conditioners

are painted

in

a flow coater

operation

in which the part

to be painted

is

flooded with paint

from nozzles

on all

sides and then transported

to

a vapor

chamber.

In the vapor chamber,

excess paint

is collected and

recirculated

to

the

flow coater and the solvent vapors are

exhausted

to the atmosphere.

After

leaving

the vapor chamber,

the parts enter

a bake oven

in which any remaining solvent

is

flashed—off.

The parts remain

in the bake oven for approximately

fifteen minutes

at 375 degrees Fahrenheit.

(Second Amend.

Pet.

p.

2).

The flow coat operation applies

a

0.6 mu

layer

of acrylic

epoxy paint

to the parts

in

a single pass.

The paint utilized

67-375

---

—2—

contains 4.669 lbs./gal.

of VOM.

Id.

However,

the paint must

be

diluted with

a

solvent

in

a

ratio

of four parts paint

to one part

solvent

in order

to be used

in the flow coater.

This solvent

contains 7.424 lbs./gal.

of VOM.

Additional solvent must be

added

to the paint upon recirculation

to maintain the

4

to

1

ratio.

Based on

1984 production figures, Fedders used 54,419

gallons of paint and solvent containing

a total

of 352, 703 lbs.

of VOM giving

a VOM content per gallon of 6.48 lbs.

(Second

Amend. Pet.

pp.

2—3).

Fedders

seeks variance from

35

Ill.

Adm. Code 215.204(h)

to

allow the VOM content

of

its paint delivered

to the coating

applicator

to exceed

the 2.8

lbs./gal.

standard and requests that

if the variance

is granted,

it be given retroactive effect and

ruci from October

1, 1982

to April

1, 1986.

The

issue before

the

Board

is whether denying the requested variance would

impose an

arbitrary and unreasonable hardship on Fedders by requiring

it

to

comply with the 2.8 lbs./gal.

standard.

For the following

reasons,

the Board finds that denying Fedders variance from

35

Ill. Mm.

Code 215.204(h)

constitutes

an arbitrary and

unreasonable hardship.

ENVIRONMENTAL

IMPACT

Fedders plant

is located

in Effingham County which

is an

attainment area for ozone.

CR.

44,

97).

There were no monitored

violations of the Ambient Air Quality Standard for ozone during

1984.

(Rec.

p.

4).

Fedders and the Agency disagree on the

extent

the emissions from Fedders’ plant exceeds

its allowable

emissions.

The disagreement centers on whether the allowable

emissions should

be calculated using

a volumetric approach

or

a

solids approach.

The parties assert that

if the allowable

emissions are

calculated using

a solids approach,

then the excess

emissions are approximately 154 tons/yr.

(Rec.

p.

4).

In

contrast,

if

the allowable emissions are calculated using

a

volumetric basis,

then the excess emissions are approximately 40

tons/yr.

(Pet.

Brief p.

ii).

The

40 tons/yr.

of

excess

emissions are predicated upon Fedders substituting a water—based

glue

in its glue booth

operations and shutting down its degreaser

used on internal sheet metal parts.

Id.

At this time,

the Board

notes

that it

is

not specifying that either method

for

calculating

the allowable emissions

is correct.

Notwithstanding

this disagreement,

the Agency admits that Fedders’ excess VOM

emissions are not likely

to cause

an exceedance

of

the ambient

air quality standard for ozone

in the Effingharn area.

(Agency

Brief p.

4).

Also,

the Board notes that Fedders’ emissions will

have very little

impact on the ambient air quality in other areas

because of distance.

Therefore,

the Board finds that the

environmental impact

of

granting Fedders variance will

be

minimal.

67-376

---

—3—

HARDSHIP

Over

the

past

ten years, Fedders asserts

that

it has

experienced

a series

of economic setbacks

resulting in aggregate

losses

of over $162 million.

Fedders also contends that over the

last few years

it has closed or sold several of

its facilities

and consolidated its manufacturing operations into three

facilities located

in Effingham, Illinois; Buffalo, New York,

and

Frederick, Maryland.

(R. 149).

Compliance with 35

Ill.

Adrn.

Code 215.204(h) will require the installation of

a new paint

system ranging

in price from $0.9 to $1.4 million which,

because

of severe capital restraints, Fedders asserts it cannot afford.

(R.

50).

Fedders claims

it has been exploring various solutions

to the paint problem the most promising

of which

is changing

to

a

water—based paint.

Fedders contends that

it has contacted several paint

companies who expressed

confidence at one time or another

that

they could develop

a paint

that would comply with Illinois

regulations.

(R.

51).

Several trial

runs were conducted

at

Fedders’ plant by the paint companies,

none of which produced

an

acceptable product.

Id.

However,

one paint company, Man—Gil

Chemical Co.,

is close

to developing

a water—based paint which

would allow Fedders

to meet the requirements

of the Board’s

regulations

and

at the same time produce

a satisfactory

product.

(Second Amend. Pet.

p.

6).

Fedders claims that based

on the foregoing,

it has demonstrated diligence in seeking

a

compliance coating.

Id.

The Agency agrees with Fedders’ assertions but cautions that

Man—Gil’s confidence that

it can develop a compliance water—based

paint may be unfounded at

this time.

(Agency Brief p.

7).

The

Agency contends that compliance

by installing

a new paint system

is not necessarily an arbitrary and unreasonable hardship but

is

only more expensive than delaying until

such time

a compliance

water—based paint

can be developed.

The Agency also asserts that

Fedders has not proposed anything which

it will do to attain

compliance,

rather, Fedders merely offers

to report on

its

progress

to secure a compliance coating.

(Rec.

p.

5).

Therefore,

the Agency requests that

the variance

be denied.

The Board finds

that Fedders has demonstrated diligence in

seeking

a compliance coating and that immediate compliance with

35

Ill. Adm. Code 215.204(h)

requiring the installation of

a new

paint system would

be financially unattainable

for Fedders at

this time.

Furthermore,

since

the environmental impact of

Fedders emissions will

be minimal,

the Board finds that denying

Fedders’ variance from 35

Ill. Mm.

Code 215.204(h) constitutes

an arbitrary and unreasonable hardship and will grant

the

variance with the requested retroactive effect.

This Opinion constitutes the Board’s findings of fact and

conclusions of

law

in this matter.

67-377

---

—4—

ORDER

Fedders—USA located

in Effingham,

Illinois

is hereby granted

variance

froni 35 Ill.

Adm. Code 215.204(h),

subject to the

following conditions:

1.

The variance period will

run from October

1, 1982

to April

1,

1986.

2.

Fedders—USA shall

cease using

a solvent based glue

in

its

glue booth operation.

3.

Fedders—USA shall shut down its degreaser used

on internal

sheet metal

parts.

4.

The volatile organic material content of

the paint and

solvent mixture delivered

to the flow—coater

on the Epon

paint

lines shall

not exceed 6.48 lbs./gal.

5.

within 45 days

of the date

of this Order, Fedders—USA shall

execute and send

to:

Illinois Environmental Protection Agency

Division of Air Pollution Control

2200 Churchill Road

Springfield,

IL.

62706

a certification

of acceptance of

this variance

by which

it

agrees

to be bound

by its terms and

conditions.

6.

This

45 day period will

be held

in abeyance for any period

during which

this matter

is being appealed.

The form of the

certification

shall

be

as

follows:

67-378

---

—5—

CERTI FICATION

Fedders—USA hereby accepts and agrees

to be bound

by all

terms

and conditions

of the Order

of

the Illinois Pollution

Control Board

in PCB 83—47,

dated January

9,

1986.

Fedders—USA

By: Authorized Agent

Title

Date

IT

IS

SO ORDERED.

I, Dorothy M. Gunn,

Clerk

of the Illinois Pollution Control

Board, hereby certif~that

the above~Qpinionand Order was

adopted

on the

_____________

day

of

___________,

1986 by

a vote

of

_____________.

(1/

TT~

~

~

/

Dorothy

M.

c~unn,Clerk

Illinois Pollution Control Board