ILLINOIS POLLUTION CONTROL BOARD
January 21,
1982
tLLINOIS ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
AGENCY,
Complainant,
V.
)
PCB 81—50
UNITEL) STEEL DRUM,
INC.,
an
)
Illinois Corporation, CLETUS
R.
CARRON,
individually and as
President of United Steel
Drum,
)
Inc.,
and SOUTHWEST REGIONAL PORT
DISTRICT,
a Municipal
Corporation,
Respondent.
MR. VINCENT R. MORETH,
ASSISTANT ATTORNEY GENERAL, APPEARED
ON BEHALF OF THE COMPLAINANT;
MR. MICHAEL
J. NESTER;
DONOVAN, HATCH, AND CONSTANCE;
APPEARED
ON BEHALF OF THE RESPONDENTS.
OPINION AND ORDER OF THE BOARD
(by J~D,Dumelle):
The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (Agency)
filed a complaint in this matter on April
7,
1981,
alleging
that the respondents violated Section 21 of the Environmental
Protection Act
(Act).
A hearing
was
held on October 23,
1981
at which only the parties and a reporter appeared.
A
Stipulation and Proposal
for Settlement was accepted as a joint
exhibit and the parties agreed that
it represented their desired
resolution of this matter except as to paragraph 6A which
remained unresolved
(R.
3—4).
rJpori an October 23,
1981 Agency
motion and a November 19, 1981 Board Order,
Southwest Regional
Port District was dismissed as a party respondent.
A final
Stipulation and Proposal for Settlement, which includes a
modified paragraph 6A, was filed with the Board on December 24,
1981.
Given the lack of public participation at hearing and
the minor change in the final Stipulation from that presented
at hearing,
the Board
finds that another hearing is unnecessary.
Respondent Cletus
R.
Carron is president of United Steel
Drum,
Inc.,
which is an Illinois Corporation which has conducted
a drum reconditioning business in St~ Clair County,
Illinois,
during the relevant time periods.
The complaint alleges:
that
from on or about March
30,
1979
up to the date of the filing of this complaint,
including but not
limited to the following dates, April
20,
1979,
June
20,
1979,
45—127
—2—
August 16,
1979, October 29,
1979, and July
25,
1980, the
Respondents United Steel Drum and Cletus
P. Carron,
caused
approximately 12,000 drums containing
an unknown amount of
residue chemicals, paints,
waste refuse,
and spent barrel
cleaning solution to accumulate and periodically leak out on
and/or into the ground,
or he dumped out onto the ground at
the site.
Respondents admit that at various times mentioned in the
complaint,
residue chemicals were inadvertently discharged and/or
accidentally spilled onto the ground at the site, but point out
that no evidence of groundwater contamination has been shown.
Based upon this admission,
the Board finds that Respondents
have violated Section 21(b)
of the
Act,
prior to January
1,
1980 and after January
1,
1981
(Ill.
Rev. Stat.,
1977,
and 1979 Supp.,
ch.
111½,
par.
1021(h)),
Section 21(a)
of the Act
during 1980
(Iii,
Rev.
Stat., 1979 Ch.
111½, par.
1021(a), effective
January
1,
1980),
Section 21(f)
of the Act prior to January
1,
1980
and after January
1, 1981
(Iii.
Rev.
Stat.,
1977 and 1979 Supp.,
ch.
111½, par.
1021(f)),
and Section 21(e)
of the Act during
1980
(Ill.
Rev.
Stat.,
1979,
ch.
111½, par. 1021(e)).
The proposal for settlement in this matter consists of
a penalty of $1,000,
a cease and desist order,
and a compliance
program which the Board finds
to be adequate to abate the current
problems and to assure that these do not recur.
The Board
further finds that the penalty is appropriate to aid in the
enforcement of the Environmental Protection Act in that no
environmental damage has been shown.
In evaluating this enforcement action and proposed settlement,
the Board has taken into consideration all the facts and cir-
cumstances in light of Section 33(c)
of the Act.
The Board notes that the federal and state hazardous
waste regulations are
in a state of
flux as the Resource
Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA)
is
in the process of being
implemented.
The Board cannot determine from the record whether
all terms and conditions of the settlement in this matter are
consistent with those regulations.
However,
the acceptance
of this settlement by the Board shall not be construed to
exempt the Respondents from any otherwise applicable State
or Federal hazardous waste
laws now in place or which will
come into effect in the future.
This Opinion constitutes the Board1s
findings of fact
and conclusions of law in this matter.
ORDER
1.
Respondents United Steel Drum,
Inc.
and Cletus
Carron have violated Section 21
(a,h,e and f)
of the
Act
at the various times alleged.
45—128
—3..-
2.
Within 45 days of the date of this Order, Respondents
shall, by certified check or money
order payable
to the State of Illinois, pay the stipulated penalty
of $1,000 which is to be sent to:
Illinois ~vironmental
Protection Agency
Fiscal Services Division
2200 Churchill Road
Springfield, Illinois 62706
3,
Respondents shall comply with all the terms and
conditions of the Stipulation and Proposal for
Settlement filed December 24,
1981, which is hereby
incorporated by reference as if fully set forth
herein~
IT IS
SO ORDERED~
D. Anderson concurred.
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
,
1982 by a
vote of
4-o.
Christan L. Mo
,
Clerk
Illinois Pollut
Control Board
45—129