ILLINOIS POLLUTION CONTROL BOARD
November 5, 1981
WESTOWN LANDS WEST SUBDIVISION AND STELLA ANNES,
)
Petitioner,
v.
)
PCB 81—43
ILLINOIS ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY,
)
)
Respondent.
OPINION AND ORDER OF THE BOARD (by I. Goodman):
On March 17, 1981 Westown Lands West Subdivision (Westown)
filed a petition for variance before the Board requesting that
certain citizens be allowed to disconnect malfunctioning septic
systems and connect instead to the Lombard sewer system which
had been placed on restricted status on July 16, 1980. Certain
deficiencies in the petition were subsequently corrected and
Westown waived hearing in this matter. The Board has received
no public comment.
Westown is a subdivision located in the Village of Lombard,
Illinois which consists of 37 lots, all serviced by individual
septic systems. Westown claims that 9 of 37 lots have
malfunctioning septic systems and requests that they be allowed
to connect to the Village of Lombard (Lombard) sewer system which
is presently on restricted status. Prior to the imposition of
restricted status, Lombard had been issued a construction permit
for the construction of a sewer extension to serve this
subdivision. This extension has been constructed but is not
operating. Currently, Lombard is upgrading its sewer system and
may be removed from restricted status as early as Spring, 1982
according to the Recommendation filed by the Illinois Environmental
Protection Agency (Agency).
According to the Agency~sRecommendation, the DuPage County
Health Department (Health Department) has inspected the nine septic
systems in the subdivision which are alleged to be malfunctioning.
It is the opinion of the Health Department that 8 of these 9 lots
are indeed malfunctioning and that it can be reasonably expected
that the balance of the 37 lots will experience similar problems
in the near future. The Health Department found that the swampy
nature of the soil in which the systems are placed; the subdivision
lots being generally only one—third the size requirement for new
subdivisions in which private sewerage disposal facilities are
used; and the age of the septic field would make repairs difficult.
44—3 1
2
In its Recommendation, the ~gency concludes that the
present situation presents a danger to public health due to the
malfunctioning septic systems. In addition any attempt to repair
the malfunctioning systems would entail expenditures approxi-
mately $4,000 per system while connection to the sewer system is
estimated to cost $1,500 per connection. On the other hand, the
Agency’s files indicate manhole surcharging downstream from the
proposed connections. (Lombard claims this is caused by problems
at a lift station which are presently being corrected.) The Agency
concludes that denial of the variance petition would, in these
circumstances, work an arbitrary and unreasonable hardship upon
Westown’s lots who actually have currently malfunctioning septic
systems. The Board agrees. The Board will grant variance from
Rule 962(a) of Chapter 3: Water Pollution for the purpose of
connecting the eight septic systems determined by the Health
Department to be malfunctioning.
On October 19, 1981 a letter from Lombard to the Agency was
filed by Westown. Lombard in the letter stated that they did
not wish to be joined as a party apparently because it would be
inconsistent with their imposition of a building moratorium in
the Village. Nonetheless, Lombard must be made a party to this
action. Therefore, the Board on its own motion will make the
Village of Lombard a party to PCB 81—43 pursuant to Rule 303(c)
of the Board’s Procedural Rules. The letter also indicates that
the Agency’s reservation concerning the surcharging of the down-
stream manhole has been corrected by the installation of two new
pumps at the lift station and the acquisition of a secondary power
source for the lift station.
The Board notes that this variance is for the purpose of
alleviating a health hazard situation caused by the eight subject
septic systems. The sewer extension is to be operated for these
connections only and is unavailable for additional connections
regardless of size. Any other use of the sewer constitutes a
violation of the restricted status and this Board Order.
This Opinion constitutes the findings of fact and conclusions
of law of the Board in this matter.
ORDER
1. Westown Lands W.est Subvidision is hereby granted
variance from Rule 962(a) of Chapter 3: Water Pollution for the
purpose of connecting the 8 lots in the subdivision identified by
the DuPage County Health Department to have malfunctioning septic
systems to the sewer system of the Village of Lombard.
2. The Village of Lombard is hereby made a party to docket
number PCB 81-43 for the purpose of notice.
44—32
3
3. Within forty—five days of the date of this Order,
Petitioner shall execute and forward to the Illinois Environment~l
Protection Agency, Division of Water Pollution Control, 2200
Churchill Road, Springfield, Illinois 62706, a Certificate of
Acceptance and Agreement to be bound to all terms
and conditions
of this variance.
This forty—five day period shall he held in
abeyance for any period this matter
is being appealed. The ~orra
of the certificate shall be as follows:
CE RT IF IC ATE
I, (We), _______________________-—
,
having read
the Order of the Illinois Pollution Control Board in PCB 81—43,
dated
-______
___________,
understand and accept the said
Order, realizing that such acceptance renders all terms and
conditions thereto binding and enforceable.
Petitioner
By: Authorized Agent
Title
Date
IT IS SO ORDERED.
Boardmember Donald B. Anderson dissented.
I, Christan L. Moffett, Clerk of the Illinois Pollution
Control Board, hereby certify that the above Opinion and Order
\~/as adopted on the ~
day of
~
,
1981
by a vote of
Christan
..
L.
.~.J.
Moffett, er
Illinois Pollution Control Board
44—33