ILLINOIS POLLUTION CONTROL BOARD

May 29, 1984

KERR—McGEE CHEMICAL CORPORATION~

Petitioner,

PCB 84—31

ILLINOIS ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION

)

AGENCY, CITY OF MADISON and

METRO-EAST SANITARY DISTRICT,

Respondents.

OPINION AND ORDER OF THE BOARD (by J. Theodore Meyer):

OTt March 19, 1984 the Kerr—McGee Chemical Corporation (Kerr-

McGee) filed a Petition for Variance with the Board, naming the

City of Madison (Madison) and the Metro—East Sanitary District as

co—respondents, along with the Illinois Environmental Protection

Agency (Agency). Kerr—McGee is seeking variance from the Restricted

Status imposed on Madison’s sewer system on March 2, 1981 by the

Agency so that it may construct at its railroad crossties manufac-

turing facility in Madison a new process wastewater treatment

plant, and connect it to the Cityvs sewer system0 Kerr—McGee

intends to build this treatment plant to replace a surface impound-

ment now being used to treat and store its process wastewater,

Without variance from 35 Iil~. Adm. Code 309.241, Kerr—McGee

cannot connect to the Madison sewer system0 The Agency filed its

Recommendation on April 26, 1984 to grant variance subject to

certain conditions~. !4o hearing was held, Petitioner having

properly waived the same. (Pet. 2, 15).

At this Kerr—McGee facility, wooden railroad crossties are

preserved with creosote, a brown oily liquid consisting chiefly

of aromatic hydrocarbons. No pentachiorophenol or copper—chrome.~

arsenic preservative solutions are used in any of the three

preserving processes utilized. Approximately 67,800 gallons of

process wastewater is generated per day~ Primary treatment is

presently provided at an oil/water separator, and the wastewater

is then contained in a sedimentation surface impoundment. There

is no discharge from this lagoon. Kerr-McGee wants to replace

the surface impoundment with three above—ground vertical oil/water

treatment clarifier tanks. The oil/water separator will be

retained. In addition, Kerr—McGee plans to segregate the plant

water into contact and non—contact streams in order to maximize

recycling. Contact water will be treated at the existing separator,

and then be directed to the treatment clarifier tanks for polishing.

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It will ultimately be discharged to the Madison sewer system.

The non—contact water will he recycled within the facility’s

process

The wastewater which currently passes through the oil/water

separator meets pretreatment standards for the timber products

category. However, the new polishing tanks will also he equipped

to

add floculant chemicals to enhance treatment as necessary

to

meet applicable federal categorical standards. The added

flocula—

tion and polishing tanks will also further reduce oil and

grease

levels,

BOD, COD,

and suspended solids, Phenol levels will

remain the same, but Petitioner claims that additional control

equipment can be added to further reduce these concentrations.

(Pet,

5), An estimated 40 gallons per day of creosote oil will

be reclaimed for recycling by these two steps. It is anticipated

that approximately 21,500 gallons per day of treated water will

be discharged to the Madison sewer system and treatment works

should variance be granted. This estimate does not include the

amount of water which will be discharged when the surface impound-

ment is being dewatered, Approximately 200,000 gallons of waste—

water will be discharged per day during that transition.

Kerr—McGee examined five alternative methods for handling

its wastewater, The first of those was its current treatment

process: an aerated surface impoundment. it found this no longer

acceptable because it was subject to hazardous waste regulations

including stringent and costly liner and groundwater monitoring

regulations. In fact, the United States Environmental Protection

Agency has requested that Kerr—McGee submit a Part B permit

application under RCRA requirements for the impoundment by July

16, 1984. In response, Kerr—McGee intends to submit immediate

closure plans. One reason for this is because the Agency has

indicated that

it

will not permit the surface impoundment for

continued use as a hazardous waste treatment facility, and a

second is because the lagoon would eventually have to be emptied,

The second alternative Kerr—McGee considered was evaporation.

However, the high amount of the precipitation in the St. Louis

area would have necessitated pan evaporation techniques, i.e.

artificially induced evaporation. The ideas of discharging to a

nearby waterway and land irrigation were discarded as alterna-

tives because there is no acceptable waterway nearby to receive

an outfall and there is insufficient land nearby for the latter.

The final alternative, a powdered activated carbon treatment

(PACT) was considered too costly because it would cost approxi-

mately $350,000 to install and would generate a hazardous waste

by-product which would have to be landfilled or incinerated

accordingly. Finally, a third reason for discontinuing use of

the lagoon, and for electing to build a pretreatment facility,

is

that it maximizes the

recovery

and recycling of the preservative

chemicals,

As stated above, Madison’s sewage system was put on

Restricted

Status in 1981, According to the Agency and Petitioner, Madison

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itself has not taken steps to upgrade its system through the

construction grant program so as ~o be removed from the Restricted

status list. However, Madison,

therefore, Petitioner, is within

the Metro—East Sanitary District, Rather than upgrade the

Madison

plant, the District’s plan is to construct a force main from the

Madison plant to the Granite City treatment works. The

Granite

City plant has a design average flow of 23 million gallons per

day (mgd), and current flows average approximately 9 mgd. Accord-

ing to the Agency, the agreement to divert the Madison plant

flows to Granite City~swas to be completed in April, 1984, and

the Madison facility subsequently eliminated in two years. At

this time the Board does not know whether such an agreement was

signed and if so what is the specific date anticipated for comple.

tion of the project. In its Recommendation, the Agency did state

that Granite City’s sewer ordinance includes a phenol regulation

more stringent than the federal limitation. The Agency speculated

that Kerr—McGee’s discharge may not comply with such a level. If

it should not, Petitioner informed the Agency that it is prepared

to work with Granite City to insure that the appropriate level

is

achieved.

The Agency agreed with Petitioner’s assessment that the

best

alternative is to build and connect an on—site treatment facility

to replace the existing lagoon. It raised, however, two problems

should Kerr—McGee discharge to the Madison treatment works.

Madison’s facility is not capable of treating for phenols. Since

the current discharge levels at Madison are well below the effluent

standards found at 35 Ill. Adm. Code 304.124, the amount contrib-

uted by Kerr—McGee should not cause problems under normal

opera-

tions. However, once its flow goes to the Granite City plant,

Kerr-McGee will have to meet the level set by local ordinance.

The second problem raised by the Agency concerned water quality,

especially the levels of phenols, during the frequent bypassing

experienced at the Madison facility. Should Ke~t—McGee’s

flow be

included along with the other amounts of wastewater bypassed,

the

Agency feared that the phenols could cause odor and taste

probleMs

for users of the downstream Illinois American Water Works Company,

To minimize this possibility and the effect caused by bypassing

into the Mississippi, the Agency suggested, and Kerr—McGee agreed,

that it should retain its flows both before and after the on—site

process plant is operational and the lagoon is dewatered, during

rainfall events of 0.25 inch rain in two hours, or greater, for

at least twelve hours.

The Board finds that denial of the variance requested by

Kerr—McGee would impose arbitrary or unreasonable hardship.

Variance will allow Petitioner to construct a treatment facility

which meets federal categorical water standards,

and to properly

close

surface impoundment under RCRA regulations, while not

jeopardizing environmental

quality in the area,

Petitioner has

identified sixteen steps

in

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—4—

rnent and switch to p:ocess

wastewater treatment tanks, The Board

finds that its

plan is environmentally preferable to the

existing

lagoon.

The Agencv~s Recommendation asks that

the

Board include

dates—certain for Petitioner to obtain permits and complete

various steps in its compliance plan.

However, the Board is

troubled no~so

much with the necessity of dates—certain

but that

the contents of the :tagoon will be sent to the Madison plant,

which only has a design capacity of 6~0 mgd and on the

average is

treating 3.9 mgd, experiences bypassing

during rainfall

events,

and which cannot treat for phenols,

Since it appears that Kerr—

McGee can neither defer dewatering the lagoon until the force

main to Granite City is completed due to the Part B permit call—in,

nor defer dewatering due to possible environmental consequences,

the Board will condition the variance

to reduce the risk of

Kerr—McGee excessively contributing

to bypassing at the Madison

facility. The dates for closing the lagoon and constructing the

various stages for improving the in—house wastewater treatment

shall be governed by the Part 13 permit call—in, the responsive

closure plan, and the construction and operating permits issued

by

the Illinois

Environmental Protection Agency.

This Opinion constitutes the Board~s findings of fact and

conclusions of law in this matter.

ORDER

Kerr—McGee Chemical Corporation, Petitioner, is hereby

granted variance from 35 Iii. Code 309~241for

the purpose of

constructing and connecting a process wastewater treatment facility

at its Madison plant to replace an existing surface impoundment,

subject to the following conditions.

1) Petitioner shall promptly apply

for

and receive the

necessary construction permits from the Division of

Water Pollution Control prior to beginning any of the

stages in its

plan to

build arid connect a process

wastewater facility as described in subparagraph

(2),

below,

2) Petitioner~sprocess treatment facility shall comply

with the following:

a) The plant’s

contact and

non~contact

water shall be

segregated,

with only the contact water

requiring

wastewater treatment;

b)

A new cooling system shall ho installed to

reduce

total

wastewater by 69.? 000

epd.

c) The existing

oil/water separator will be

modified

as proposed by the

Petitioner;

d) Sufficient chemical

treatment of

the

process

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—5—

wastewater shall be provided to

maintain

phenol

levels

below

the federal categorical limits

and

the sewer-use ordinance limit set by Granite City;

3)

Only

after obtaining the necessary operational permits

from the Division of Water Pollution Control may Peti-

tioner begin discharging to

the

Madison treatment

works;

the

United States Environmental Protection Agency and

obtaining the permits required in subparagraph (3) may

Petitioner begin dewatering the existing surface

impound-

ment;

5) During periods of rainfall of 0.25 inches or more

per

2

hours and for twelve hours after the rainfall has ended,

Petitioner shall not allow its process wastewater

6)

Within forty-five

days from the date of this

Order,

Petitioner

shall execute and forward to the Illinois

Environmental Protection Agency, Division of Water

Pollution Control, 2200 Churchill Road, Springfield,

Illinois 62706, a Certificate of Acceptance and Agree-

ment to be bound to all terms and conditions of this van’

ance for any

period

this matter is being appealed. The

CERTIFICATE

I, (We),

,

having

read the Order of the Illinois Pollution Control Board in PCB

84—31, dated

May

29, 1984, understand and accept the said

Order,

realizing that such acceptance renders all

terms

and conditions

Petitioner

By: Authorized

Agent

Title

Date

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IT IS SO ORDERED.

I, Christan

L. Moffett, Clerk of the Illinois Pollution

Control Board, hereby certify that the above Opinion and Order

was adopted on the

~

day of

_______________

1984 by a vote of

____~~~,

Christan L. ~

Clerk

Illinois Pollutioi~tControl Board

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