ILLINOIS POLLUTION

CONTROL

BOARD

June

22~ 1978

ALLIED CHEMICAL

CORPORATION,

Petitioner,

vs.

PCB 77—203

ENVIRONMENTAL

PROTECTION AGENCY,

Respondent

OPINION

AND ORDER OF THE BOARD

(by

Or,

Satcheil):

This

matter

comes

before

the

Board

non

a

variance

petition

filed

by

Allied

Chemical

Corporation

on

July

29, 1977,

Petitioner

requests the

continuance

in

paft

of

a

previous

Board

variance,

PCB 75-Ill.

Petitioner

is requesting

variances from

Rules

404(f)

and 408(a)

and Rule

203(a)

and

203(f)

of the

Chapter

3:

Water

Pollution Control Regulations

for its Minerva

Mill No.

1

and.

Spivey Mine.

Both tiese operations

are in Hardin

County

Illinois.

The previous varsance grant

included five mine

areas.

The areas not included in this variance

request have

either come

into compliance or operations have been

discontinued.

Minerva

Mine No.

I, adjacent to Minerva Mill

No.

1, produces

fluorspar,

zinc and barite ore in association with

limestone,

silica, silicates,

shale and other ganque materials.

The average

daily

production,

five days a week,

is approximately

700 tons.

The ores

contain approximately 2

zinc,

26

fluorspar and 12

barite.

The Spivey Mine contains fluorspar,

zinc and lead

sulfide ores

in association with limestone,

silica,

silicates,

shale and

other gangue materials.

The average

daily production,

five days a week,

is approximately 250 tons,

Spivey Mine ores

contain

approximately 1

zinc, variable

2

to

10

lead sulfide

and approximately

50

fluorspar,

Petitioner

has

followed the compliance plan

set out in

PCB 75-111.

Under this plan construction was

to be completed by

June

30, 1977.

After starftup of the pollution

abatement facility

on or about

July

1,

1977 Petitioner undertook

to take representative

samples

of

its discharge and effluent from

Minerva Mill No.

1

and Spivey

Mine.

These samples indicate that

after treatment in

the abatement

facility the effluent from Minerva Mill

No.

1,

exceeds the

allowable standards for:

ammonia

nitrogen,

fluoride,

cyanide, silver,

copper,

lead and total dissolved

solids.

The

Spivey Mine

effluent after treatment exceeds

the allowable

standards for:

ammonia nitrogen,

total

dissolved solids, silver,

boron, copper,

lead and mercury.

30

—

493

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—2—

At

the

time

of

the

filing

the

variance

petition

Petitioner

did not feel that there were enough representative samples of

effluent under the normal operating conditions of its pollution

abatement equipment to determine what additional corrective steps

should be taken.

This determination was based on the facts that

at the time the samples were taken start-up problems were probably

still present; tests reflected for the first time the presence of

ammonia

nitrogen in quantities theretofore unknown and no prior

analysis had reflected the presence of ammonia nitrogen in any

quantities of significance; and the values for silver and lead

were precisely the same for two separate discharges at two different

mine sites

seems far too unusual and anomalous to be a valid

coincidentaloccurrence.

On this basis further samples were

scheduled to be taken the first week in August 1977,

The

Environmental

Protection

Agency

(Agency)

filed

a

recommendation October

5,

1977.

The Agency had done an investi-

gation in August 1977 of Petitioner’s facilities which did confirm

that the Mill effluent was in violation of Rule 408 of Chapter

3.

However, at this time Petitioner was having operational difficulties

in its system caused by the mechanical failure of two acid metering

pumps.

In October Petitioner began a new sampling procedure.

The

Agency received these results on November 30,

1977 and consequently

the Agency filed an amended recommendation on December 27,

1977.

Petitioner filed a response to this recommendation on January

26,

1978.

Additional information was filed by the Petitioner on

May

1,

1978.

Petitioner did follow the compliance plan set out in PCB 75-111.

At the time of the grant of that variance the Board recognized

that the potential for violation of some of the general use water

quality standards would exist even after

all facilities were

completed and fully operational.

In its original recommendation

the Agency recognized the difficulties of start—up of physical

chemical treatment facilities and recommended

a short term

variance.

On the basis of

data submitted by Petitioner on samples taken

between October

3,

1977 and October

17,

1977 the Agency amended

its recommendation generally to five year variances with conditions

for

certain parameters.

At the Spivey Mine variances from

Rule 408

as

it pertains to cyanide, Rule 404(f)

and Rule 203(f)

as it pertains

to copper and cyanide were not recommended.

At

the Minerva Mine variances from Rule 408 as it pertains to copper

and

cyanide,

Rule

404(f)

and

Rule

203(f)

as

it

pertains

to

copper

and

cyanide

were

not

recommended.

The Agency particularly noted

that the concentrations of

copper and cyanide shown by Petitioner’s sampling at the Minerva

Mill

are

not

consistent

with

the

levels

projected

by

Petitioner

in

Table

6

of

its

Design

Report

(submitted

in

PCB

75—111).

30

—

494

---

—3—

However,

in its January

26, 1978 Response Petitioner states that

the Design Report indicated

that cyanide treatment facilities

would be installed

if necessary and only after

cyanide

reduction

in the mill had been

evaluated and after Phase One had been

implemented and

operating and that the copper level reflected

in

Table

6 was never

represented by Petitioner or the Agency to be

reducible to the

.02 mg/l

limit by the Phase One pollution

con-

trol system.

The Board

interprets the Design Plan pages 16-21

to indicate

that treatment would be installed only after cyanide

reduction

was

evaluated

and

Phase

One of the plan implemented.

The

treatment

did not work as expected because apparently the

copper and cyanide

were

complexed.

Petitioner has been pursuing a resolution to its copper

and

cyanide

problems

as

evidenced by a document

submitted

to

the

Board

subject

to

nondisclosure.

In view of this report

the

cyanide

problem

may

be

resolved.

This presumably

will

allow

the

present

treatment

system

to

remove the excess

copper.

Petitioner

has

shown

good

faith

in pursuit of a resolution

of

this

problem.

The

Board

will

grant

Petitioner’s Minerva Mill

No.

1

a

variance

for

copper

and

cyanide

from

both

Rule 408(a)

and

Rule

203(f)

of

Chapter

3

for

one

year

and

for its Spivey mine

a

variance

for

copper

and

cyanide

from Rule 408(a) and a variance for

cyanide

from

Rule

203(f)

of

Chapter

3

for

one year.

The Board will further

grant

variances

for

the

Spivey

and Minerva Mill Mines as consistent

with

the

Agency

recommendation.

The Board finds that

given

Petitioner’s

on-going

effort

to control

its

discharges

that

it

would

suffer

arbitrary

and

unreasonable hardship

if

denied

this

variance

grant.

After

the

Agency

filed its amended variance

recommendation

Petitioner

requested

a

variance

from Rules

203(f)

and

402

for

ammonia

nitrogen.

The

presence

of ammonia

nitrogen

in

quantities

greater

than

allowed

in

water quality standards

was

a

recent

discovery

by

Petitioner.

The

source of the

ammonia

nitrogen

is

a

blasting

agent

used

by

Petitioner.

A study

was

done

by

Petitioner

but

no

technologically

feasible

and

economically

reasonable

method

of

reducing

the

ammonia

nitrogen

was

found.

In its proprietary

report Petitioner concludes any

treatment

would be experimental

in nature and design.

The Board will grant

Petitioner

a variance from Rule 402 and Rule 203(f)

for a period

of one year.

This will allow Petitioner time to arrive at a

compliance plan if

necessary.

Concerning the ammonia nitrogen,

copper and cyanide variances the Board will require Petitioner to

submit

quarterly

reports concerning Petitioner~s progress toward

compliance

to

the

Agency.

Because

of

a

void of information

concerning

Rule

404(f)

the

variance

request will be dismissed.

The Board will direct the Agency to modify Petitioner~s

NPDES permit consistent with this opinion and order pursuant to

Rule 914 of Chapter

3.

This Opinion constitutes the Board’s findings of fact and

conclusions of law in this matter.

---

ORDER

It is the order of the Pollution Control Board that Allied

its Spivey Mine and its Minerva Mill No,

1.

At the Spivey Mine variances from Rules

203 (f),

402 and

408 of Chapter

3:

Water Pollution Regulations shall be

granted for five years subject to the following conditions:

1.

The variance from Rules

203(f)

and 402 shall be

limited to total dissolved solids, sulfate and copper.

2.

The variance from Rule 408

shall

he

limited

to

total

dissolved

solids.

3.

The

effluent

concentration

of

total

dissolved

solids,

based

upon

a

twelve

month

running

average,

shall

not

exceed

2,700

mg/i.

4.

The

sulfate

concentration

in

Petitioner’s effluent,

based

upon

a

twelve

month

running

average,

shall

not exceed

1,500

mg/i.

5.

The copper concentration in Petitioner’s effluent,

based upon a twelve month running average,

shall

not exceed 0.041 mg/i.

At the Spivey Mine variances from Rules 203(f),

402 and

408(a)

of Chapter

3 shall be granted for one year subject

to the following conditions:

1.

The variance from Rules 203(f)

and

402

shall

be

limited to ammonia nitrogen and cyanide,

2.

The variance from Rule 408(a)

shall be limited to

copper and cyanide.

3.

Petitioner

shall

submit quarterly reports

to the

Agency on its efforts to achieve compliance concerning

copper, cyanide and ammonia nitrogen.

At the Minerva Mill variances from Rules 203(a),

203(f),

203.1 and 402 of Chapter

3 shall be granted

for five years

subject to the following conditions:

1.

The variance from Rule 203(a)

shall be limited to

the “unnatural sludge” element of that Rule and shall

expire July 1, 1978.

2.

The variance from 203(f), 203.1 and 402 shall be

limited to total dissolved solids,

sulfate and

fluoride.

3.

The fluoride concentration in the effluent wastewater

stream, based upon a twelve month running average,

shall

be

limited

to 5.8 mg/l.

4.

The total dissolved solids component, based upon a

twelve month running average, shall be limited to

1,800 mg/i.

30

—

496

---

5.

The sulfate concentration rn Petitioner’s

effluent, based upcn

a ~

month running

average,

shall not exceed 720 mg/i,

At the Minerva Mill

~.r~rzan.

: ±:omnuJes

203(f),

402 and

408(a)

of Chapter 3 will be qranted for a period of one

year

subject to the foilowir~conditions:

I.

The variance from Rules i33~f~ nd 402 shall be

limited to ammonia nitroc~i,co ocr and cyanide.

2.

The variance from Ru~ ~iPa)

all be limited

to copper and cyanide

3.

Petitioner shall submit

:o tic

acy quarterly

reports on its efforft

~i

I~ic~

compliance

concerning copper, cyao~dsand ~rnmonia nitrogen.

Petitioner’s

request for va~’ai1cz r~ooRule

404(f)

is

dismissed,

Within 45 days after the dotE~o’~ the Board herein the

Petitioner

shall execute

an5.

roc

L

ft

Illinois Environmental

Protection Agency, Variance So:tiu

,

~200 Churchill Road,

Springfield,

Illinois 62706, a

Certificati~:

occop

:nce

and Agreement to be

bound to all terms and cor~d~t~

~f

uc~ variance.

This

45 day

period shall be held in abeyarc~

an~ period during which

this matter is appealed,

Thc

I r~n

I CaJd Certification shall be

as follows:

I,

(We),

_________

:aving read and fully

understanding the Order of the h~l:u~as ~LLution

Control Board

in PCB 77-203 hereby accept saad Order and agree to be bound by

all terms and

conditions therec’

Late

The Agency, pursuant

to

Rule

9l~ of

C~apter

3, shall modify

Allied

Chemical

Corporation~ NPDES

~‘ervltconsistent with the

conditions

set

forth

in

this

order

~ncliding

such interim

effluent

limitations

as

may

reaso’~ftOy

be

achieved through

the application of best practicable operation and maintainance

practices in the

existing facilift

30

—

497

---

—

I, Christan

Control Board, hereby certify the above Opinion and Order were

adopte&~,onthe

__________

day of

~

,

Christan L. Moff

Illinois Pollution Control Board

30

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