ILLtNOIS POLLUTION CONTROL BOARD

August

21,

1985

ILLINOIS

ENVIRONMENTAL

)

PRcYrECTION AGENCY,

Complainant,

v.

)

PCB 85-58

)

CTY

OF

WEST FRANKFORT,

)

an Illinois municipal

)

corporation,

Respondent.

MR.

JAMES

L. MORGAN AND MRS.

SUSAN VANTREASE,

ASSISTANT ATTORNEYS

GENERAL, APPEARED ON

BEHALF OF THE COMPLAINANT.

MR.

DONALD R.

LUCAS, ATTORNEY AT LAW, APPEARED ON BEHALF OF THE

RESPONDENT.

OPINION AND ORDER OF THE BOARD

(by W.

J. Nega):

This matter comes

before the Board on the May

1,

1985

Complaint brought by the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency

(Agency).

This

two-count

Complaint

alleged

that

the

Respondent’s

municipal

sewage

treatment

facility:

(1)

discharged

effluents

containing excessive levels of ammonia nitrogen

(as

N), five-day

biochemical oxygen demand

(BOD5), and suspended solids, and

(2) failed to properly operate and maintain its plant

or to

submit

the necessary monthly discharge monitoring reports

to the

Agency in violation of

35 Ill.

Adm. Code 302.212,

304.105,

305.102(b),

309.102(a)

and Sections

12(a),

12(b) and

12(f)

of the

Illinois Environmental Protection Act

(Act).

A hearing was held on July

16,

1985 and the parties filed a

Stipulation

and Proposal for Settlement

(Stip.) on July

31,

1985.

The City of West Frankfort

(City), which is located in

Franklin County,

owns and operates

a trickling filter wastewater

treatment plant

(WWTP) which is rated at

1.4 million gallons per

day.

The WWTP provides tertiary treatment by an

aerated lagoon

which discharges

its effluent into the Middle Fork of

the Big

Muddy River pursuant to its NPDES Permit.

The Respondent was issued NPDES Permit No.

1L0031704 on

May 30,

1975.

This original permit was subsequently modified on

July

16,

1976 and was set to expire on December

31,

1978

65-345

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-2-

(modified permit).

Although

a timely application for renewal of

the modified permit was submitted by the Respondent,

“the permit

could not

be renewed under Section 301(1)

of the Clean Water Act

of

1977,

33 U.S.C. Section 1311(1)”.

(Stip.

2).

Accordingly,

the Respondent’s NPDES Permit was later reissued on April

4,

1983

(reissued permit).

The modified permit that was issued to the Respondent

established effluent limitations on the WWTP’s effluent

of 10

~niiligramsper liter

(mg/i) for BOD5 as

a monthly average and

12

mg/i for suspended solids

as

a montFily average.

Additionally,

this modified permit provided that the concentration of ammonia

nitrogen

(as N)

in the WWTP’s effluent be limited in order to

prevent the waters

of the Middle Fork of the Big Muddy River from

exceeding the standards established in Rule 203(f)

of the Board’s

Water Pollution Regulations

(and later

35 Ill,

Adm. Code

302.212).

(Stip.

3).

The

Board entered an Opinion and Order on December

16,

1982

in PCB 82-117, City of West Frankfort v.

IEPA which granted the

City of West Frankfort

a variance until September

1,

1983 from

the ammonia nitrogen limitations

of

35 Ill. Adm. Code 302.212 and

35 Ill.

Adm. Code 304.301 as well as from the BOD5

and total

suspended solids effluent limitations

of

35 Ill. Adm, Code

304.120(c).

The variance that was

granted in PCB 82-117 provided

that the effluent discharged by the City’s WWTP would not exceed,

as

a

monthly

average,

20

mg/i

for

BOD5,

25

mg/i

for

suspended

solids,

and

15

mg/i

for

ammonia

nitrogen.

These standards were

incorporated

into

the

City’s

reissued

permit

as

interim

conditions.

(Stip.

3).

However, the final conditions in the~reissued permit set

stricter

limits

of

10

mg/i

for

BOD5

as

a

monthly

average

and

12

mg/i

for

suspended

solids

as

a

monthly

average.

Moreover,

the

final

conditions

in

the reissued permit mandated that the WWTP’s

effluent contain less

than 1.5 mg/i of ammonia nitrogen during

the time period from April through October and required less than

4.0 mg/i of ammonia nitrogen during the time period from November

through

March

when

the

downstream

daily

maximum

ammonia

nitrogen

concentration

of

the Middle Fork of the Big Muddy River exceeded

the levels delineated in 35 Ill.

Adm. Code 302.212.

The City has admitted that, on certain specified dates

between

September

29,

1978

and

March

26,

1981,

it discharged

effluent from its WWTP which caused the waters

of

the Middle Fork

of the Big Muddy River

in the immediate vicinity of its facility

to contain concentrations of ammonia nitrogen

(as

N) which

exceeded the limits set forth in Rule 203(f) of the Board’s Water

Pollution Regulations

(now

35 Iii.

Adm, Code 302.208)

and in the

Respondent’s modified permit,

(Stip.

4).

The City has also admitted that,

on five specified dates

between September 2~1983 and September

28,

1983,

it discharged

effluent from its WWTP which exceeded the applicable limits for

65-346

---

—3—

ammonia nitrogen in violation of the interim conditions

of the

reissued permit, thereby causing the waters

of the Middle Fork of

the Big Muddy Creek to contain concentrations of ammonia nitrogen

above the limits prescribed

in 35 Ill. Adm. Code 302.212.

(Stip.

4—5)

Additionally, the City has admitted that, during various

specified months between July,

1981 and June, 1984,

it discharged

effluent containing concentrations of BOD5 and suspended solids

which

exceeded

the

monthly

average

limits

allowed

in its NPDES

Permits,

its

variance

in

PCB

82—117,

or

35

Ill.

Adm. Code 304.120

(Stip.

5—6).

Furthermore,

the

Respondent

has

admitted

that

it:

(1)

failed

to

submit

the requisite monthly discharge monitoring

reports

to the Agency as required by

its modified permit for the

months

of May,

1980,

June,

1980,

and July,

1980,

and

(2)

intermittently failed to properly operate and maintain

its

WWTP.

(Stip.

6).

In reference to the proper maintenance and operation

procedures

at the WWTP, Agency inspections have revealed that:

(1)

the

automatic

bypass

sluice

gate

had

to

be

manually

operated

and

the

comminutor,

flow

meters,

and

one

of

the

lagoon

aerators

were not working on September

27,

1978

and

September

29,

1978;

(2) “the automatic bypass sluice gate still had to be manually

operated and the comminutor and flow meters were still not

repaired” on July 11,

1979 and August

8,

1980;

and

(3)

the flow

meters were still not operational on March

21,

1984.

(Stip.

6).

The proposed settlement agreement provides that the

Respondent admits the violations alleged in the Complaint and

agrees

to:

(1)

cease

and

desist,

from

further

violations;

(2)

upgrade

the

plant

and

prevent

any

further

violations

by

cleaning

the

existing

effluent

polishing

lagoon;

conducting

the

appropriate

fecal

coliform

testing;

and

returning

the

facility

to

proper

operation,

and

(3)

pay

a

stipulated

penalty

of

$1,500.00,

(Stip.

7).

In

evaluating

this

enforcement

action

and

proposed

settlement

agreement,

the

Board

has

taken

into

consideration

all

the

facts

and

circumstances

in

light

of

the

specific

criteria

delineated

in

Section

33(c)

of

the

Act

and

finds

the

settlement

agreement

acceptable

under

35

Ill.

Adm,

Code

103.180.

The

Board

finds

that

the

Respondent,

the

City

of

West

Frankfort,

has.violated

various

specified

conditions

set

forth

in

its

modified

and

reissued

NPDES

Permits

as

well

as

in

its

variance

in

PCB

82-117

and

has

therefore

violated

35

Ill.

Adm.

Code

302.212,

304.105,

305.102(b),

309.102(a)

and

Sections

12(a),

12(b),

and

12(f)

of

the

Act.

The

Respondent

will

be

ordered

to

cease

and

desist

from

further

violations;

follow

the

agreed-upon

compliance

plan;

and

pay

a

stipulated

penalty

of

$1,500.00.

65-347

---

-4-

Thi.s

Opinion

constitutes

the

Board’s

findings ol

i;icl:

and

~~)nctuS

ions

of

law

in

this

matter.

OR DER

It

is

the Order

of

the

Illinois

Pollution

Control

Boacd

1..

The

Respondent,

the

City

of

West

Frankfort,

has

vIolatL(~d

35

Ill.

Adm.

Code

302.212,

304.105,

305.

L02(a)

and

Sections

12(a),

12(b), and 12(f) of the Illinois

Environmental Protection Act.

2.

The Respondent

shall cease and desist from

al.1

Further

violations.

3.

The Respondent

shall take the following actions

in order

to upgrade its wastewater treatment plant and to

prevent any further violations

of the Act or

applicabic”

Board regulations:

(a)

The City has returned its wastewater treatment

plant to proper operation and shall continue to

properly operate the plant;

and

(b)

The City has cleaned the existing effluent

polishing lagoon and shall continue

to properly

maintain

it; and

(c)

The City shall comply with the provisions

of its

NPDES Permit and applicable Board rules

and

regulations regarding fecal coliform testing

and

effluent limitations.

4.

Within

45 days

of the date of this Order,

the Respondent

shall,

by

certified

check

or

money

order

payable

to

the

State

of

Illinois,

pay

the

stipulated

penalty

of

$1,500.00

which

is

to

be

sent

to:

Illinois Environmental Protection Agency

Fiscal

Services

Division

2200 Churchill Road

Springfield, Illinois

62706

5.

The Respondent

shall comply with all the terms

and

conditions

of the Stipulation and Proposal for

Settlement filed on July

31,

1985, which is incorporated

by

reference

as

if

fully

set

forth

herein.

IT

IS

SO

ORDERED.

65-348

---

—5—

I,

Dorothy

M. Gunn,

Clerk of the Illinois Pollution Control

Board hereby cQrtify that the above~Opinionand Order was adopted

on the

________

_______

day of ______________________, 1985 by

a

vote of

2-c)

.

Dorothy M. G~nn,Clerk

Illinois

Pollution

Control

Board

65-349