ILLINOIS POLLUTION CONTROL BOARD
October
19,
1978
ILLINOIS ENVIRONMENTAL
)
PROTECTION AGENCY,
)
)
Complainant,
)
v.
)
PCB 78—46
)
ROBERT W.
GOOLEY,
)
)
Respondent.
MR.
JEFFREY
S.
HERDEN,
ASSISTANT
ATTORNEY
GENERAL,
APPEARED
ON
BEHALF
OF
THE
COMPLAINANT.
MR.
HOWARD
BERLAND,
ATTORNEY
AT
LAW,
APPEARED
ON
BEHALF
OF
THE
RESPONDENT.
OPINION
AND
ORDER
OF
THE
BOARD
(by
Mr.
Werner):
This matter
comes
before
the
Board
on
the
February
16,
1978
Complaint brought by the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency
against Robert W. Gooley, Gerald W. Menke d/b/a Menke Sewer
Service Company, and Winfield A. Gustafson d/b/a G
& L Septic Tank
Service Company.
Count
I of this Complaint alleged that Respondent
Robert W. Gooley had violated Rules 202(a),
301,
310(b)
and 314(c)
of
Chapter
7:
Solid Waste Regulations and Section 21(b)
and
Section 21(e)
of the Illinois Environmental Protection Act.
Count
II
of the Complaint alleged that Gerald
W.
Menke, d/b/a
Menke Sewer Service Company, had violated Section 21(f)
of the Act.
Count III of the Complaint alleged that Winfield A. Gustafson,
d/b/a
G
& L Septic Tank Service Company, had violated Section
21(f)
of the Act.
On April 28,
1978,
the Agency filed a Motion to
Dismiss
without prejudice the Respondents Gerald W. Menke d/b/a
Menke Sewer Service Company and Winfield A. Gustafson d/b/a
G
& L
Septic Tank Service Company from the case.
On May 11,
1978,
the
Board granted the Agency’s motion and dismissed Respondents Menke
and Gustafson from the case.
A hearing was held on June 13,
1978.
The
parties
filed
a Stipulation and Proposal for Settlement
on
June 16,
1978.
The stipulated background facts indicate that the Respondent,
Robert
W.~-Gooley
(“Gooley”),
owned a parcel of real estate
located in Kane County, Illinois until May 12,
1977, when equitable
title
passed
to
a contract purchaser.
—2—
Prior to May 12, 1977, certain portions of the site were
used as a landfill.
Gooley accepted garbage, institutional and
commercial refuse, wood and landscape wastes,
as well as some
liquids and sludges.
The exact quantity of refuse accepted is
unkno~n,since no records were kept indicating quantity of refuse
received.
The Agency first inspected the site on February 11,
1975.
Additional inspections took place on March 19,
1975, July 29,
1975,
April 26,
1976, April 28,
1976, May 26,
1976 and September 21,
1977.
These inspections indicated that:
(1) refuse deposited at the site
was not being spread and compacted as rapidly as it was deposited;
(2) daily and final cover had not been applied;
(3) liquid wastes
and sludges had been accepted;
(4) the property lacked fencing,
gates
or other measures to control access to the site;
and
(5)
no
operating permit had been obtained.
The Agency advised Gooley of its findings shortly after each
inspection.
Gooley indicated his willingness to properly close
and cover the site,
but took no action to implement his intentions.
Prior to May 12,
1977,
Gooley had been involved in negotiations
for the
sale
of the property encompassing the site with Burnidge
Brothers-Almora Heights,
Inc.,
(“Burnidge Brothers”)
a Delaware
corporation and an Elgin,
Illinois land developer.
These
negotiations proved successful,
and Burnidge Brothers
is now the
contract buyer of the Gooley property.
The parties have stipulated that Burriidge Brothers has no
responsibility or liability for the violations which occurred on
the Gooley property and that Gooley has no present authority to
enter upon the site to correct past violations.
(Stipulation,
p.
3; Record,
p.
6).
However, Burnidge Brothers voluntarily
agreed to remedy the situation.
At the hearing,
the Assistant
Attorney General stated that Agency investigators had visited the
site on June 12,
1978 and indicated that Burnidge Brothers had
already placed “at least
2 feet of final cover on portions of the
Gooley property that had been used as
a landfill.”
(R.
3).
The Agency
has
contended that the stipulated background facts
show that the Respondent, Robert W. Gooley,
has:
(1) operated the
site without a permit,
in violation of Rule 202(a)
of the Solid
Waste Regulations and Section 21(e)
of the Act;
(2)
not performed
the requirement of Solid Waste Rule 303(b),
in that refuse was not
spread and compacted as rapidly as it was deposited, in violation
of Solid Waste Rule 301 and Section 21(b)
of the Act;
(3)
not
performed the requirements of Solid Waste Rules 305 (a)
and 305 (c),
in that daily and final cover were not applied in violation of
Rule 301 of the Regulations and Section 21(b) of the Act;
31—654
—3—
(4) not performed the requirement of Solid Waste Rule 310(b),
in
that liquid wastes and sludges were accepted at the landfill,
in
violation of Solid Waste Rule 301 and Section 21(b)
of the Act;
and
(5) operated the site without providing fencing,
gates or
other
measures to control access to the site,
in violation of
Solid Waste Rule 314(c)
and Section 21(b) of the Act.
The Respondent,
Robert W.
Gooley, has admitted these
violations of the Board’s Solid Waste Regulations and the Act.
Accordingly, as a result of settlement discussions between the
Agency and the Respondent,
the parties have filed a Stipulation
and Proposal for Settlement.
Basically,
the
settlement
agreement
provides that the Respondent shall:
(1)
cease and desist from
further violations of the Board’s Solid Waste Regulations and the
Illinois Environmental Protection Act; and
(2) pay a
stipulated
penalty of $500.00
.
The agreement also states that “Burnidge
Brothers,
not
a
party
to
this
action,
has undertaken to properly
close and cover the site.
Burnidge Brothers will do all things
necessary to comply with the cover requirements of Rule 305(c)
of
the Regulations, and the monitoring and filing requirements of
Rule 318.”
(Stipulation,
p.
5).
The purpose
of
this
provision
is
to minimize the threat of any potential environmental problems
which may occur at the site.
In evaluating this enforcement action and proposed settlement,
the Board has taken into consideration all the facts and circum-
stances in light of the specific criteria delineated in Section
33(c)
of.the Act.
Incinerator,
Inc.
v.
Illinois Pollution Control
Board,
59 Ill.
2d 290, 319
N.E.
2d 794
(1974).
Accordingly,
the Board accepts the Stipulation and
Proposal
for
Settlement
and
finds
Respondent
Robert
W.
GQoley
in
violation
of Rules 202(a),
301,
303(b),
305(a),
305(c),
310(b)
and 314(c)
of
Chapter
7:
Solid Waste Regulations and Section 21(b)
and Section
21(e)
of
the
Illinois
Environmental
Protection
Act.
The
Board
imposes the stipulated penalty of $500.00
This Opinion constitutes the Board’s findings of fact and
conclusions of law in this matter.
ORDER
It
is the Order of the Illinois Pollution Control Board that:
1.
Respondent Robert W. Gooley has violated Rules 202(a),
301,
303(b),
305(a),
305(c),
310(b) and 314(c)
of Chapter
7:
Solid Waste Regulations and Section 21(b)
and Section 21(e)
of
the Illinois Environmental Protection Act.
—4—
2.
Within 35 days of the date of this Order,
Respondent
Robert W. Gooley shall pay the stipulated penalty of $500.00
payment to be made by certified check or money order to:
State of Illinois
Fiscal Services Division
Illinois Environmental Protection Agency
2200 Chu~chi1lRoad
Springfield,
Illinois
62706
3.
Respondent Robert W. Gooley shall comply with all the
terms and conditions of the Stipulation and Proposal for
Settlement filed June 16,
1978, which is incorporated by reference
as if fully set forth herein.
I,
Christan L. Moffett, Clerk of the Illinois Pollution
Control Board, hereby certify the above Opinion and Order were
adopted on the
/~‘
day of ~
,
1978 by a
vote of
‘/-~
QAL~ ~
Christan L.
Moffet,L
~erk
Illinois Pollution
6~trolBoard
31~6